Surviving Clerkdale High
by Apple Senorita
Summary: Max and Kai attend Clerkdale High. Life is, pretty much, boring and unbearable, thanks to their taunters.but then a new boy arrives,and life starts to get more interesting.things come to light about this new boy,things that Max and Kai find are the type o
1. Chapter 1 The New Boy

ASenorita: Hey! This fic starts off a little slow but gets going. It just suddenly came to me to write it, it's been in my head for a while. There may be a little bit of OOC-ness but ah well, I'll try hard not to make the characters too unbelievable.

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade…yet evil grin

WARNING: This is NOT a yaoi fic at all, more of a friendship one

Max Tate lay comfortably on a tree branch, one leg dangling down, and his bag by the roots underneath him. It was so hot, and he was in bad need of shade, and the cool damp feel he got sitting amongst the tree branches was a huge relief.

He was hidden as well, which was a bonus, which meant no-one would disturb him whilst he rested.

So it was a big shock when he heard, "Hello Max," from beneath him.

He leapt a mile in the air and nearly fell from the tree.

"Kai!" he yelled, clutching the branch, "Why do you always sneak up on me!"

"That's a nice way to greet your brother,"  
"Oh get lost," Max huffed, heaving himself back up onto the branch, "I'm not talking to you, remember?"  
Kai, who seemed relaxed, leant against the tree with his arms folded and let his head roll back to look up at his younger brother.

"Oh yeah. Why's that again?"  
"You know why," Max scowled. It was very hard to try and stay mad at Kai and keep his position on the branch. He couldn't get comfy like he had been before, and nearly fell again.

"No,"  
"You did it, _again_!"  
"Did what?"  
"That's really annoying Kai!" Max yelled, scrabbling at the branch as he slipped. He collected himself and finally got comfortable.

"And being all innocent really doesn't work for you,"  
"I didn't do anything Max. Stop getting so worked up, you're going to fall out of the tree,"  
"I've got balance, I'll have you know," Max snapped.

"Yeah, and its crap,"

Kai could hear him growling at him even from up in the branches and he laughed.

He knew he looked a weirdo, since no-one could see he was talking to someone up in a tree. But then again, Kai was never counted on as being a sane person anyway.

"You know exactly what you've done. You always do it. It's not fair, you're so mean to me!"

"You sound about four years old,"  
"But it's not fair! Just because you haven't got a nice guitar…"  
"I _like_ my guitar,"  
"Yeah, well then why do you go senselessly destructing mine! It was new, it was a Gibson, you know how much it cost,"  
"I didn't do anything that bad to it,"  
"You broke one of the strings again! And it's got a cut in it. So go away, I'm not talking to you anymore,"  
Kai raised his eyebrows and remained quiet.

Max, who was scowling and muttering to himself up in the tree, heard vaguely the noise of a group coming towards them.

He heard a small groan from his brother down below.

He sat up, hooked his legs around the tree, and let himself fall to the side.

He appeared inches away from his brother, hanging from the tree with his legs wrapped tightly around the branch up above him.

"Who is it?"  
"Who do you think?"  
It was Lee, Michael, Kane, their bunch of thick headed morons and their little gang of groupies. The girls were simpering all over them and the guys were lapping it up.

"It's sick," Max said, whose hair was sticking straight down, and whose face was slowly turning red, "They're such a bunch of pricks,"

The group looked over and saw Kai and Max, and began to laugh too loud, just to make it plain to everyone in the Quad who they were laughing at.  
Max scowled and hauled himself back up, "I really, really don't like them," he grumbled as he got comfy again.

Kai continued to watch the group, even though now they had got to the stage where they were sticking their fingers up at him, and jeering loudly.

There was something, or some_one_, that interested him.

He was making his way towards the group, his hands dug into his pockets, his head slightly bent, but looking as if he was about to walk right up to the group.

Kai had never seen him around before. He was new.

Then what the _hell_ was he doing walking to the cruellest group in school.

The gaggle noticed him too. Some were smirking and laughing as he pushed his way through their midst's.

Then he reached Lee.

Lee faced him, and there was a silence.

Kai frowned, studying both of them. They looked quite alike. Both were lightly tanned, with raven black hair, although this new boy's was tied back apart from the front which grew wildly in floppy bangs on his head, and the rest fell down in a wrap to his ankles.

This new boy said something.  
Lee looked shocked, then he frowned.

He distinctively said, "Get lost,"

The other boy scowled.

He hand something in his hand, and Kai narrowed his eyes to try and see what it was.

It looked like they were getting into an argument, getting more and more heated by the minute, until the new boy shoved whatever had been in his hand in Lee's chest and stormed off.

Lee's cronies gawped for a couple of minutes, staring at Lee.

Lee glared at them, and they snapped out of it.

They howled "ooh!" after the boy as he left, everyone turning to watch.

"What's going on?" Max hung back out of the tree, "What? What's happened?"

He looked over at who Kai was watching.

"Who's that?"  
"New guy,"  
"Really? He looks pissed off,"  
"Hmm,"  
Max tried to wrangle more out of Kai but the blood was going to his head and his legs were aching, so he had to go back up into the tree again.  
"I thought you weren't talking to me!" Kai called up into the branches as he left.

"I'm not!" Max yelled after him.

Kai picked up his bag and left across the Quad.

"Kai? Kai! Where've you gone! Wait!"

Max tumbled from the tree, grabbing his bag and running after his brother.

**Ray's POV **

My first day of school was _not_ fun. I had to give that gift from my Grandfather to Lee in front of all his stupid friends. Bunch of idiots. I didn't _want_ to give it to him, in fact, I didn't want anything to do with him. Just because I've started the school he's at, just suddenly means to my family that we'll be friends again.

Lee was supposed to be showing me around today, on instruction from his mother, but I was glad when I saw nothing of the guy all day.

Until lunch time, of course, when I realised I had to give him the gift then or there would be no other opportunity, and I had to give it to him today.

I heard them 'ooh'ing after him.

Jerks.

I just had to let Lee rile me up, didn't I? Why didn't I just stay calm?

It's just that when that over-confident, pompous prick-face jerk starts having a go at me, I can't stop myself.

That was a great way to start my time at Clerkdale High School, making an idiot of myself in front of _that_ lot.

Wonderful.

I spent the rest of the day skulking around on my own. No-body came forward to talk to me, so I didn't talk to them.

My classes were alright, I guess, the teacher's were OK.

Nothing too hard in lessons.

I quite enjoyed them.

Of course, that was whilst I was trying to dodge rubber bands being flicked at me from behind by my cousin's friends.

At the end of the day, I was about ready to crawl into my locker, lock the door behind me and just live like that for the rest of my school life.

I was miserable.

And then I found out probably the worst thing of the day…my locker was right next to Lee's.

The Gods were against me.

What was wrong with this school, did they _rig_ my locker position! Just because I'm related to that jerk doesn't mean I want to have to endure his idiocy all day!  
I glowered and went to put my books away.

His little gang were jostling around the locker doors with their girlfriends.

I try to get to my locker but Lee is blocking it.

He finally notices me glaring at him and turns around.

He obviously didn't tell the others how the two of us are related, because the one with maroon hair jeered, "Oh look, it's _you_ again. What do you want now?"  
I narrowed my eyes at him but didn't answer.

"Move," I said to Lee.

I wasn't in the mood for being polite.

"You're rude, aren't you?" Lee sneered.

I opened my mouth to say something when I heard a voice behind me.

"Move, Lee, or you'll _look_ rude,"

I turned, and was met with the strangest coloured eyes I had ever seen. They were a deep chocolate brown, tinted crimson. And their owner looked pretty astonishing too.

He was just about my height, with a slender frame. He wore baggy black pants and a deep purple t-shirt with a black jacket over it with three-quarter length sleeves. On his hands were purple fingerless gloves.

I gawped for a second before realising what I was doing and blinking.

"Er…" I started, not quite sure what to do.  
Lee, for once, helped me out though, by saying, "Oh look, another loser,"

Who used the word 'loser' anyway? To someone's face I mean. I always call people losers but not to their face…

I'm drifting.

Anyway, this other guy just ignored Lee.

I realised his locker must be on the other side of Lee's, and he really _couldn't_ get to it with that lot there.

I didn't know what to do. If Lee threw a punch, it would likely go through me first, and I wasn't about to get involved.  
They stood there glaring at each other for a while before Lee said, "Where's your little brother gone Kai? Back to Kindergarten?"

This Kai guy snarled and his eyes narrowed.

My cousin couldn't help jibing him on though, until Kai looked about ready to punch him.

Lee laughed, took a step forward towards him.

I stepped in his way.

"Lee," I said. Sure, I didn't want to get involved, but I wasn't about to let my cousin start a fight with someone over a locker.

Lee looked furious that I dared give any idea to his friends that I knew him.

He advanced on me.

His fist lashed out to punch me. I dodged, slamming my back against the lockers to get out of the way of his fist.

He turned on me again, but this time I was stuck between him and the lockers.

Still, I hadn't been doing martial arts since the age of four for no reason.

Lee knew this as well.

But I suppose he had something to prove to his friends.

Before he could try anything again, a teacher came running up.

"Hey, move off! Come on, all of you, split up and go home!"  
His cronies slunk off and Lee followed, spitting some rude word at me in Chinese before leaving.

I stood there watching them leave, pressed back against my locker door, adrenalin running through me

That Kai guy moved around me, and got to his locker.

I straightened off my locker, and, trying to pretend like nothing had happened, spun the combination lock and opened it up.

'That's it, just ignore the guy who stood up for you in a fight.

Don't mind me I'll just continue with my life as normal not being appreciated,'

I was actually beginning to calm down though as I got my stuff sorted, when suddenly something barrelled into my side.

I hit my locker door violently, and ending up with my back pressed against the inside of my locker door which had dented my cousin's locker.

"Sorry!" the blonde cried.

He had obviously slipped, because he was sat on his ass on the floor. His bag had been flung backwards and the strap was around his neck. His arms were holding him sitting up. He had probably thrown them back to stop himself from falling flat on his back.

"Sorry," he said again, panting, pulling himself up, "I slipped,"

Although I wasn't too thrilled at being thrown into a metal door, I nodded, "S'OK,"  
"You're an idiot," I heard that Kai say, shutting his locker door. I thought he was talking to me, and spun around to ask him what the hell that meant, when I realised he was talking to the blonde.

The boy was dusting himself down.

He wore an orange Billabong t-shirt and brown combats. He had these wild bangs of blonde hair and big blue eyes. If it wasn't for the muscles lightly defined on his arms and his general build (although even that was slightly skinny), I would of thought he was quite young.

"I can't help it if I slipped Kai!" this boy argued, rearranging his bag.

"And anyway, I was coming to see if you and Lee hadn't split each other's heads open. I heard from someone you two were squaring up,"  
Kai didn't reply.

He started off down the corridor.

This younger boy turned to me and smiled.

"Sorry, again. I never look where I'm going,"  
"It's OK, honestly,"  
I felt in slightly more of a giving mood now that Lee was out of personal space.

I think also I was kind of glad someone was talking to me in a friendly way.

"You're new, aren't you?"

"Yeah,"  
"Well, I'm Max Tate. And that's Kai,"  
"I'm Ray Kon,"

"You like it here?"  
I shrugged. Well, what was I supposed to do?

_Lie_!

Because if I lied, I would say, "Yeah, it's great," and I don't see the point in lying between my teeth to someone nice enough to come and talk to the me: the newbie.

"Yeah, I know how you feel. It's not so great is it?"  
"No, not particularly,"

"Well, if you wanna hang out, we wouldn't mind. See ya later,"  
"See you,"

Max skidded off Kai, who was just going through the Main Entrance doors.

"Kai wait!" he yelled, his bag bouncing painfully.

I shut my locker and headed off that way too.

Even with Max's kind offer, which I appreciated, I just wished something would come and shoot me down before tomorrow.

Before I had to face Clerkdale High again.

Review!


	2. Chapter 2 Happiness and Loneliness

Hello again!

Right then, here's the next chapter.

(see the first chapter for the disclaimer, I am _not_ writing it out again)

Chapter 2

"We're home!"

Judy Tate leant over the banister to look down into the hall. Her two teenager boys had come through the door and were kicking their shoes off.

She came down the stairs, her bobbed blonde hair tied back with a bandana over it.

"How was the first day of school this year? Any different?"  
"No, still as bad as ever," Max said, disappearing into the kitchen.

Kai went up to his room.

"Max honey?" Judy called, placing the boys shoes more neatly under the coat rack.  
"Yeah?"

She went to talk to him, and found him sitting on the breakfast counter, eating an apple.

"Your guitar's fixed,"   
"Great!" Max leapt off the counter and sprinted upstairs, "Thanks Mom!"

Up in his bedroom, Max crooned and grinned over his newly fixed guitar, cradling it preciously in his arms. Even the scratch had been filled and painted over. You could barely see it!  
"There, happy now?"

He looked up.

Kai was standing in the doorway.

Max glared.

"I'm not talking to you, remember?"  
"Yes, you've been saying that all day,"  
"Yeah well it's true, I'm still mad at you. It's only _my_ things you ruin, not your own, not Mom's,"  
"I don't own anything to ruin,"  
"That doesn't mean you should pick on my stuff!"  
Kai went to sit next to Max where he was sat on his bed hugging his guitar.

"I don't mean to,"  
"Yeah, I know, you always say that," Max huffed, but he could feel himself weakening.

He knew Kai couldn't help it. He had these moods, these periods where Kai would just sort of switch off, it was like he wasn't really in his body. And things would happen, like things would go missing, things got broken, or Kai hurt himself.  
And when he came out of it he had no idea what had happened.

No-one knew why Kai did things like that in his dream state, but he did. He didn't want to, but he didn't have much control.

"Well I didn't want to, I didn't mean to. And anyway, it cost me a bomb to get it fixed, so don't be expecting a birthday present,"  
Max nearly dropped the guitar.  
"Kai! You paid to get it fixed!"  
Christ, he knew how much getting a guitar fixed cost, particularly an expensive one like a Gibson! And particularly since the only person who could do it was a mean guy who charged way too much. He charged you ten dollars for just coming through his door.

Before Kai could blink Max had wrapped his arms around his neck. Kai stiffened.

"Max,"  
"Thank you Kai!" Max said into his shoulder.

Kai just laughed, and he relaxed.

"That's OK,"

That's it, glare at me all you want, there's no way I'm going to do it.

"_Ray_!"  
"Mum, _no_!"  
"Just for one night! I thought you would _like_ to go over. You always used to, we couldn't drag you home! And it would be much more fun than staying up in your room all night, wouldn't it? I know you like watching films in the evening, and things like that. And you _can_ over there…"  
"No, no way, no fricking way,"  
"Ray don't talk like that,"  
"Mum, I am _not_ going over to his house!"  
My Mum threw her arms in the air and stormed off, saying, "You and Lee used to be _such good friends_ and _now_…"  
Go on, whittle on all you want. I _know_ Lee and I used to be good friends. We were the best of friends, we did nothing without each other. And because we were cousins, our mum's knew each other from the start!

But then my aunt and uncle and Lee moved to America. He promised he'd write to me and he didn't. He didn't ring, he didn't try and make any contact with me.

And when we moved over here two years ago, he was such a prick! I didn't know what had got into him!

He just wasn't Lee.

He wasn't my cousin.

He wasn't my friend anymore.

I was enrolled at another high school then, and I was thankful I didn't have to go to his.

But then…things _happened_…and I got moved.

Which explains why I'm now going to Clerkdale High along with that jerk.

And because Mum still can't seem to make out that I really don't want to be friends with Lee anymore, she wants me to stay over at my Aunt's tonight to stop me from feeling lonely up in my room whilst they entertain their guest for a dinner party.

Well guess what, I'm _always _lonely.

Every night I spend up in my room, or sitting watching a movie. It's not because I _want_ to, it's because that's all I've got to do.

I left all my friends in my China, my only friend over here ditched me for his street cred, and now I am teased at school by him.

I'm lonely all the time, tonight won't make a difference. If I stay up in my room all night, it would be no different, because I've done the same every night of my life in this country.

My friends are thousands of miles away, my best friend hates me, I hate my school, I have no friends, and I'm so _lonely_.

I know I sound pathetic, but it's all true. I can't help it. It's been like this for two years now.

I'm sick of it.

"Shing, would you go and talk to Ray for me!" I could hear my Mum telling my step-dad.

I can hear him put down his stupid newspaper and creak over here in his stupid squeaky shoes.

He sits down opposite me from where I'm lying across the sofa.

I've heard him and Mum complaining about me to each other. They think I'm being a lazy lay-about. They think I just can't be bothered to make friends, and that I've changed into a rude stroppy teenager. They don't understand, but I must admit they hit the nail on the head with the last bit.

Shing gives me that stupid look he always gives me and says, "Why won't you go around to Lee's? You were always over at each others house back home…"  
And suddenly I exploded.

"I him And we're not back home, are we! We're not in China anymore! Us being friends was normal back there! But it's not here! This is a completely different place! I hate this country and I hate that _him_!" I yelled and stormed upstairs.

I had never spoken to him like that before.

Well, actually, I lie. I _have_ spoken to him before like that, and said a lot of worse stuff. But that was when Shing was in the process of marrying my Mum, when I hated him and wanted him to fall of the face of the earth. I didn't mind telling him what I thought of him either.

I've got over it now, sort of.

But I was too tired and too ticked off to be nice to him.

I can hear them going on and on about me downstairs.

Well, I'll let them.

They can have their fancy dinner party if they want, but I'm staying up here.

As I lay on my side, on my bed, I could just see my guitar poking out from behind my wardrobe.

My wardrobe never fitted up to the wall properly, and I hid my guitar in there probably six months ago when…when I…stopped playing.

I longed to grab it and play it, but I promised myself I'd give up.

Well, just to stop the temptation, I'll sell it.  
Get rid of it and make some money as well.

I started planning out my 'For Sale' sign in my head as I drifted off to sleep.

Bit of a shorter chapter. Well, I hope you notice but there are mentions of things that have happened and Ray's covering up (and I am not pointing it out because I think you're stupid, I'm pointing it out because I am extremely bad at being subtle. Either it's glaringly obvious or it's just not visible at all!), so I am _trying_ to make it interesting.

Anyway, review please!


	3. Chapter 3 The Fight

Thanks Cinder Fox! My first review! Woo!

Anyway, this chapter may be a bit boring again, but er…actually, no, I don't have an excuse, but I swear it gets really good soon!

Clerkdale High was bathed in watery sunshine. The light spilled onto the students as they trickled into school, the clear air making the noises ring through the air.

The school bell rang throughout the grounds, and people wandering into school picked up a little bit of pace.

Max heaved his guitar case into his locker, careful not to bash it, and pulled out his books.

His brother had gone off to his locker a few corridors away, and as Max turned away from his locker, he saw the new guy Ray heading off to his.

"Hey Ray,"

Ray startled.

"Oh, hi," he noticed Max and gave a small sigh. He was highly strung about meeting Lee. The last thing he needed was seeing _him_ first thing in the morning.

"You OK?" Max asked as they walked towards Ray's locker corridor.

"Yeah, why?"  
"I dunno, you just look jumpy,"  
"Yeah, well, I'm at school aren't I?"

Kai was putting his guitar in his locker too, and was just getting his books out when he heard an all-too familiar voice.

"Hello again,"

'Crap, what does _he_ want?'

Lee, Johnny, Tala and Bryan were standing behind him.

Lee had spoke, and he continued to, "Is that your guitar? Christ Kai, how long have you had that? It's what, fifty years old! It will be an antique soon. Particularly since you can't play it,"

Kai shut his locker and turned to face them.

These four used to be his friends.

Lee, with his black hair, tanned skin and ferocious cat-eyes. He was always opinionated, and he always had something to say about someone.

Johnny, maroon hair styled up like flames so many times, that now it was natural. He could sneer at anything and at anyone and make them feel about as stupid and underneath him as he could make them look.

Bryan, with his silver hair and sly look. Bryan could turn anything into stone with a look.

Tala, flame red hair and cold blue eyes. He used to be Kai's best friend, they were best friends since the age of four. But he looked at Kai coldly now, as if they had never exchanged civil words before in their life.

Behind Kai, Max came up with Ray.

They both paused, noticing the four against one stand-off.

Max said, in a small voice, "Ah,"

This was going to be fun.

All of his brother's old friends without their little gang of girls and thugs, standing in striking range of his brother's fist.

'Don't do anything stupid Kai,' Max thought, desperately, watching with wide eyes.

It was bloody on both sides.

At the end of it, Kai sported a bleeding head and lip, Lee a bleeding head and heavily bleeding nose, Tala a hefty bruise, Bryan a split lip and two huge black eyes, Johnny a bruised and bleeding nose, and Max and Ray (yes, they managed to get stuck in too) both came out with heavily bruised eyes.

It took two teachers, a few of the seniors, and a frantic gym teacher with a whistle to separate the boys, and another hour to calm some of them down.

"He tried to fucking kill me!" Johnny had yelled about Kai continuingly through the blood pouring out of his nose as the school nurse tried to staunch the flow.

Tala and Johnny were sat in the reception area, which would of shocked anyone coming to visit the school.

Bryan was in a classroom looking royally pissed off and refusing to cooperate for the teacher trying to stop his lip bleeding.

Kai was in the sick room, and there was a paramedic there, because once the fight had stopped Kai had passed out for fifteen minutes and his head was bleeding from somewhere. Lee was lying stretched out on a mat in the gym area yelling obscenities at Kai through the wall as he was being treated. And Max and Ray were sat in the Deputy Head's office, holding ice packs to their eyes.

The pair expected, since they had been part of the brawl, to get a yelling at when the Deputy Head came in to change their ice packs, but she smiled and said, "How's your eyes?"

She must of seen the fight or something.

"Erm, OK," Max took the ice pack away from his right eye and saw himself in the mirror across the room.

He nearly fell off his chair.

The bruise had got an almost navy blue, with green and yellow tendrils and patches. It spread around his right eye and just to the bridge of his nose. It was slightly swollen at the corner of his eye, and that was where it hurt most.

The Deputy Head, Mrs All, lifted his face up to check his eye.

"Well, it doesn't seem to have done any damage to your actual eye. Can you see properly? Is it hazy at all?"  
"No,"  
"Good. You'll just have to keep sitting there with that ice pack though I'm afraid, if you want the bruise to go away and the swelling to die down. Now Ray, lets have a look at yours,"  
Ray's eye stung considerably. He took the ice pack off, and the result was much the same as Max's.

Except that there wasn't any swelling.

"Can you see OK?"  
"Yes,"  
"Well then, you're just the same as Max. Just keep that ice pack on it for as long as you can,"  
Max and Ray sat there miserably, pinning the ice packs to them.

"Ow," Max said, into the silence.  
Ray sighed, "That went well,"  
"How did we get involved again?"  
Ray gave a small smile, "I don't know. I think it was when Lee tried to punch me,"  
"And Tala fell into me and dragged me into it,"  
"Now we look like pandas,"

"Exactly,"  
And suddenly, they had no idea why, the pair burst out laughing.

Well, for about two seconds. Then they both convulsed in pain as laughing seemed to make their bruises hurt more.

In the end, Kai was fine. He had a cut on his head but they didn't need stitches, and he was OK. He was back at school the next day.

Unlike Tala and Lee, who were suspended for three days for violent behaviour.

Over the next few days, Ray and Max became good friends.

Kai was always there, but Ray had only spoken a few words to the guy.

He didn't seem to talk much at all, actually.

Ray found out that Max and Kai were loners as well, really. The only friends they had were each other, since no-one dared come near them.  
"Why?"   
Max glanced around, as if making sure no-one was listening.

They were up in the tree, resting in the branches.

"Well…don't make any incline that you know this around Kai. Because he'll kill me if he finds out I've mentioned this to you. But, those four: Lee, Johnny, Tala and Bryan, used to be his friends. That was his little gang. Those five were formidable, no-one liked to get in their way. I was kind of friends with them as well. They were nice to me and everything, but soon they started asking me to get lost everytime I appeared. Kai got narked, because he said there was no need. Then they started rowing over everything. Girls, the fights they got into, me. Then they had this massive argument, a huge fight that ended up with Tala and Kai in hospital. After that, they've just kicked Kai out of their little group. It's not fair, either, because Kai and Tala used to be best friends. You could never split my brother and Tala apart…"  
"Brother! Kai's your brother?"  
"Yeah. I didn't say, did I? Sorry. Yeah, he is. Well, kind of. My Mom adopted him two years ago,"

"Really? I didn't know,"  
"Sorry, I forget to say,"  
They sat in silence for a while, then there was a sound beneath them.

"Max?"  
Max dipped down to see his brother standing by the roots of the tree, looking up.

"Hey Kai,"  
"I'm going home,"  
"What?"

Max dropped down from the tree.

Ray tucked himself up and craned downwards as far as he could without making it obvious. He listened.

"School nurse rang Judy up to say could I go home,"  
"Why? What's wrong?"

Kai glanced up at the branches. He had an idea that that Ray guy was up there. He knew the guy pretty well, even though he hadn't spoken to him much, and thought he was cool and everything, but he wasn't about to talk about his medical state in front of him.

"Later Max," he said, simply, and turned away.

Max hopped back up into the branches.

"What's up?"  
"School nurse has sent Kai home,"  
"Why?" Ray asked, innocently.

Max shrugged, "Don't know. Suppose she could choose from a number of things,"  
Before Ray could ask any questions, the bell for afternoon lessons rang.

"Shall we meet by your locker? I mean, I know you walk the same way as us and everything,"  
"I do?"  
"Yeah, we see you,"  
"Well…yeah, sure. See you at the end of the day then," Ray said, with a smile.

TTFN


	4. Chapter 4 Cruel Play

A Senorita: hey. I've just realised I'm updating in two chapter bouts, it's really weird. I think its to make sure I don't bore anyone to death!

Well, this is the shortest chapter yet, but I am working on the next one, which will have some drama in it!

My life couldn't even get worse.

There are amoeba on Saturn who are having a better time than I am.

This afternoon has been terrible.

In history, Johnny looped his bag strap around my ankle. I didn't notice, I thought it was mine.

He was sat just behind me with Lee, and I could hear them laughing, but I ignored them.

I thought they were just making some sort of comments about me.

Then Johnny gave a huge tug on his bag. The strap yanked at my ankle. I felt something snap, and the force of my ankle being jabbed backwards made me fall right off my chair onto my knees, my ankle tangled in Johnny's bag strap which he had pulled under his chair.

"Kon, if you don't like that chair, we can always swap it. But if you don't find anything wrong with it, then please don't pitch yourself off it,"  
I glared.

The class sniggered.

It wasn't fricking funny, that hurt like hell!

I untangled my ankle and sat back on my chair, Lee and Johnny guffawing behind me.

Yeah, very funny.

But now, as I limp my way to my lockers, I can tell something is seriously wrong with my ankle. There's a bit which feels loose, that doesn't seem to move right when I walk, which gives me a Long-John Silver type limp.

How attractive.

I got to my locker, and heard my cousin and his little fan club behind me. I sighed. What _now_?  
"Limping are we now Ray? What have you done?" came a mock-sympathetic voice.

I ignored it.

I knew who it was.

Lee's mocking seems to have been burned into my memory.

"Hey, aren't you listening to me!" he shouted. Violently, forcibly, closer to me now.

For a moment I couldn't believe this was my cousin. I thought this was some randomer with a problem.

But this was my cousin.

My ex-best friend.

The boy who had almost promised he would be there for me. And who ignored me when I was in dire need of his help, who ignored my plea for help, mocked me at my weakest point.

"Rude," Johnny spat.

I ignored them, shoved my math book into my bag.

Then Lee spun me around, his fist connecting with my face. I had been so absorbed with my disbelief I hadn't noticed his hand reaching out to me.

I cursed myself as I dodged another punch.

But it was four against one.

And I was taken by surprise by punches and kicks.

One came to my stomach, and a pair of hands shoved me backwards.

There was a blinding pain to the back of my head as my head hit the shelf in my locker, then I continued falling backwards right down into my locker.

I heard them laughing and the door shut.

I sat there, clutching my head.

I was sure I felt something warm running down my hands.

And suddenly, I was crying.

I could hear them walking off, but I wouldn't of cared if they had been standing right outside the door.

I cried into my knees in the dark.

After a while, once I had cried enough, I merely sat in the dark in a small little curled-up ball and stared miserably into the darkness.

The bleeding had stopped but I didn't feel so good. Dizzy, sick. Tired. I just wanted to stay in that locker until my entire year had graduated, then crawl out and find a hole to live in.

I could hear whistling.

I realised I had been crying again and sniffed, pulling my knees closer to me to try and drown out the sound.

The footsteps stopped just outside my locker.

Max! It must be Max!

I listened, waiting, hoping he would just leave.

Then I sneezed.

Wonderful timing.

"Ray?"  
I groaned. I felt so sick and dizzy, and clammy in this stupid locker. I think I was beginning to run out of air as well.

"Ray are you in there?"  
"Yes," I mumbled, hugging my knees.

"Wait, give me your combination and I'll open the door,"  
I told him my combination and he spun it in. He opened the door and I winced against the light.

He pulled me out, and had to catch me as my staggered. The combined effect of my head and the sickening pain in my ankle weren't doing me much good.

I thought I was going to faint.

Ugh, it really hadn't been my day.

Hope ou enjoyed it. Please review!

-


	5. Chapter 5 Cruel Reminders

Once again, thanks Cindy Fox! Aw, I don't mind I don't have many reviews, as long as one person is happy reading my stuff then that's fine by me!

Yeah, there'll be a bit more about Kai and Max being adoptive brothers soon, so it'll explain even more clearly.

Disclaimer: I have to refresh this because I use song lyrics in this chapter, and they don't belong to me at all.

I woke up on something comfy, and I could tell that the light was dim, which I appreciated, as my eyes didn't feel up to much light. My head felt bruised and hurt, and my mind was fuzzy and sleepy.

"Mum, I think he's awake," I could hear someone whisper on my right. Who was that?  
"Sh Max," a softer, female voice said, and I felt a hand on my arm.

"Ray?" that voice again, the female one. It was soothing. It didn't hurt my head.

Slowly, I opened my eyes, focusing on a woman's face. She was in her early thirties, with straight blonde hair.

Then another face appeared.

One I knew.

Max.  
"Hey Ray,"  
I tried to say something but I felt like my tongue had been ripped out, and my their was a disgusting taste in my mouth.

"Ugh," I managed to say. Wow, I sound intelligent.  
"Are you OK?" Max asked.

"Judy?" a third voice sounded. I recognised it, but couldn't quite place it, "The phone's ringing,"  
The woman left, and I felt the owner of the third voice enter.  
"He's awake Kai,"  
Kai! Of course!

"What happened?"  
I didn't know if he was talking to me or Max. I tried, again, to say something, but I ended up coughing, which made my head ring.

I felt myself being sat up.  
"There," Max said. The coughing stop, and I was handed a drink of water. I didn't have the best grip, and my hand was shaking slightly, but I drank it gratefully anyway.

"Yeah Ray, what happened?" Max asked. His face was a mask of concern.

He took the glass of me when I had finished. I was too dazed to register much, and I would of clutched it in my hand until I had regained my senses.

"Er…" I tried to remember, digging into my mind.

Then…

"Lee. Lee, we…got into a fight,"  
Max winced, "Well, you certainly _look_ like you've been in a fight,"  
I glanced to my right. Kai was sat on an armchair across the room. He seemed to bristle at the mention of Lee's name, much like I did when my cousin came up in conversation.

"Where am I?"  
"Our house," Max, becoming cheerier, "We brought you back here, you passed out at the locker. My Mom's a doctor. She's bandaged up your head,"

I put a hand to the material on my head.

In the distance I could hear who I assumed to be Max's mom, talking on the phone.

"What time is it?"  
"Seven,"  
"Seven!"  
"Yeah. You were asleep for quite a while,"  
There was a pause.

"Thank you Max," I said, looking at my hands. I expected him to be put off about having to drag me back and get his mom to bandage me up. But…

He smiled.

"No problem Ray,"

I got home at ten. My mum was going frantic, she nearly burst a capillary or two when I came through the door with a bandage on my head, holding my bloodied clothes in my hand.

And yes, that is correct, I wasn't wearing my own clothes when I entered my home.

I was wearing some of Kai's.

Max had got his adoptive brother to go and get me some to borrow, because the ones I had were covered in blood.

I felt awkward, standing in the hall with Judy and my mum, with Kai's clothes on.

Judy had insisted on walking me home, so she assured my mother as I crept upstairs, wanting to crawl into bed and not wake up.

I had just reached the landing, when the door shut downstairs, and I gathered Judy had left.

"Rei!"

I growled. What did my mum want?

"What Mum!" I shouted down, hand on the door handle.  
"Who exactly did you get into a fight with?"  
"Er, no-one mum," I mumbled, tugging on the sleeve of Kai's purple top. I didn't want to tell her it had been Lee. She would just make too much of a fuss.  
"Oh…well. Just make sure…it doesn't happen again, OK Rei? You scared me, walking through the door with bloodied clothes in your hand and a bandage on your head, I thought you'd be knocked down by a car or something,"  
"Well I wasn't, OK?" I snapped. Boy, I was really loosing my patience with my family these days. I'd pretty much lost my respect for my mum and step-dad, unintentionally. I tried to get it back but it wasn't working, and it was worrying both me and my parents.

"Alright Rei!" she cried, shaking her head, "Calm down! Anyway, I also came up to tell you Lee came over today, to talk to you. You weren't in, but he asked if he could borrow a CD from you. I let him get it, you didn't mind did you?"  
I stammered, "W-What!"

Lee had been in my room! Lee had been in the house when he knew I was locked in a locker at school! And I highly doubt he just waltzed over here to borrow a CD!

"OK Mum, thanks," I said, hurriedly.

I waited until she left downstairs, then turned and burst into my bedroom.

The light was off, the window thrown open.

It took a while for my eyes to adjust to the dark but when they did…

I screamed.

Stuck up on the walls, covering almost every inch of space I could see, were the pictures.

The pictures I thought I had hidden, the pictures I thought I had buried and got rid of from my memories.

There they were, tacked to the wall, hanging from the ceiling, looking down at me, pinning me from all sides.

All those memories, months of the things I never wanted to remember in glossy rectangle form, covering my sight.

"Rei!"

I could hear Shing coming up the stairs.

I couldn't move, I swear I had completely and utterly frozen.

Shing reached the top of the stairs.  
"Rei what's wro…"  
"Nothing!"

I leapt out of my room, slamming the door behind me, barring it from Shing.   
"Rei…"  
"It was nothing. I didn't know the window was open when I went in and it slammed shut. It just made me jump,"  
Shing eyed me.  
I could barely look at him in the eye.

"OK then," he said, after a while, and left.

I sagged against my bedroom door.

So that was what that bastard Lee was in my room for! He wasn't borrowing a CD! He was uprooting everything I hated and had tried to bury! He knew I would be out, so he came over and found my old pictures, the ones I wanted to destroy but couldn't bare to burn.

I felt exhausted.

I heaved myself sluggishly into my room, shutting the door behind me, and sliding to the floor.

Lightning from the storm lit up the pictures.

Those pictures.

All of them burning more memories into the front of my mind.

How could he do this? How could he stoop so low as to haunt me by bringing back…_this_.

I stared up at the walls. I couldn't take my eyes off them.

I staggered up, using the furniture to help me get to my bed, unable to stand on my own. I knelt on my bed, my eyes fixed on the photographs.

How could he do this?

How could he do this?

How could he?

Tears traced their way down my cheeks.

I didn't want to be reminded, I didn't want to be shown what I had spent so long trying to forget.

My fingers touched the photos nearest to me, the cold feel of them sending dreaded shivers up my spine.

But I couldn't put my hand down.

I couldn't resist touching them.

I couldn't take my eyes away.

And I suddenly realised:  
I couldn't ever forget, either…

_I'm so tired of being here_

_Suppressed y all my childish fears_

_And if you have to leave, I wish that you would just leave_

_Because your presence still lingers here _

_And it won't leave me alone_

_These wounds won't seem to heal._

_This pain is just to real _

_There's just too much that time cannot erase_

_When you cried I wiped away all of your tears_

_When you screamed I'd fight away all of your fears_

_And I held your hand through all of these years _

_But you still have all of me_

_You used to captivate me,_

_By your resonating light _

_But now I'm bound by the life you left behind_

_Your face it haunts my once pleasant dreams_

_Your voice chased away all the sanity in me_

_These wounds won't seem to heal,_

_This pain is just too real_

_There's just too much that time cannot erase_

_When you cried I wiped away all of your tears_

_When you screamed I'd fight away all of your fears_

_And I held your hand through all of these years _

_But you still have all of me_

_I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone_

_And though you're still with me, _

_I've been alone all along _

Hope that was a good chapter!

TTFN!

And review, please!


	6. Chapter 6 Brotherly love and theories

Apple Senorita: yay, another review! Thank you very much Kinau, and Cinder Fox!

You'll soon see about the pictures, what they were of with come to light soon!

I hope

Disclaimer: this is another chapter with song lyrics. There won't be many, but when there are, I will put a new disclaimer up. And, in this chapter, I don't own the song.

I was sat in the middle of my room, surrounded by the pictures. I had taken them all down from the wall, and piled them around me.

And now I had noticed a CD case, with a CD inside, lying in the middle of the room.

I sat there, staring at it, not daring to listen to it.

It hadn't been there when I had left that morning, so I assumed it was a 'present' from my lovely cousin.

Eventually, I put it on.

As soon as it began to play I launched for the plug and snapped it out of the wall.

Panting, I relaxed, letting the plug fall to the floor.

That was even worse than those photographs.

I couldn't stand to hear _their_ voices.

Not again.

I was too traumatized from the pictures as it was.

"Kai! Kai come and help me with the shopping,"  
She could hear the sounds of Kai coming downstairs.

It was Saturday. Max was at his guitar lesson, so it was just Judy and Kai in. As Kai began to empty the bags of shopping, Judy glanced over her shoulder and asked, as innocently as she could.

"Did you say that Ray boy got into a fight?"  
"Yes," Kai said, simply, opening the fridge to put in some ham.  
"Oh, who with?"  
"I don't know," Kai said, stiffening. Of course, he knew who with. But he wasn't about to mention that.

"Oh, OK," Judy said, eyeing Kai since the boy had his back to her. She wanted to know why Kai had been acting so ticked off since Rei had been brought in with his head bleeding. Maybe it was because they were friends and he was angry but…Judy sensed something else.

"How are you feeling today Kai?"  
"Fine,"  
"Good. Are you going to go and pick Maxy up or shall I go?"  
"I'll go,"  
Judy sighed. Why couldn't she have a conversation with the boy that was not one-sided? He only spoke about ten words a day maximum!  
"Well, you'd better think about going soon. Can you take the dog, we haven't given him a walk today,"  
"No!"

Judy startled.

"Kai, what is with you and the dog? Why do you hate him?"

"Because that dog hates me! Haven't you seen it! It goes for me every time we're alone together!"  
"Oh don't be silly. Pirate is a lovely little dog, he wouldn't hurt anyone. Now stop fussing Kai and get ready, or you'll keep Max waiting,"

Kai stalked off.

There was no point in arguing over Judy or Max about the dog.

Pirate, had been Kai's arch nemesis in the Tate home, ever since he had arrived two years ago. He swore that that 'lovely little dog' was more intelligent than it looked, and _knew_ when it was just him and Kai in the house. Last time that had happened, Kai had had to lock himself in the bathroom as Pirate tried to tear down the door to get at him.

And of course, when Judy or Max got home, he'd roll on his back and let them tickle his tummy and nudge them and licked them.

Kai _hated_ that animal.

I was glad it was Saturday the day after the fight, the CD and the photos. I needed a rest.

But my Mum was being her usual active self, and wanted me to take our neighbour's dog for a walk.

"Mum, _no_!"  
"Oh please Rei! Just around the block!"

She managed to wrangle an 'OK, fine!' out of me eventually. I was too tired to argue. And I thought the fresh air would do my head some good, and the neighbour's dog wasn't half as bad as some of the dogs I have had to walk for payment in my life.

Those dogs were the reason I prefer cats.

I walked passed the park, my neighbour's dog dragging me along the sandy ground past the swings and roundabout. Some people were playing basketball.

Unfortunately, two of them were Johnny and Tala.

I stopped pulling on Sniffler's lead and let him take me quickly past them. From behind, I could hear them swinging open the gate into the basketball park, and following me.

They hounded me all the way down the street, passed the large houses on the outskirts of town. They yelled, swore, threw stones that only just missed. Some that didn't.

I didn't have the strength to fight them, I just wanted to get home and curl up under the bed.

They stayed with me like shadows as I looped the block, nearly taking in half the town at the same time as I tried to take detours, hoping to shake them off

I was just turning into a backstreet, when someone running ran headlong into me. My grip snapped away from the dog's lead and I hit the floor with an 'oof'.

Behind me, I could Tala and Johnny laughing.

Idiots.

I cracked open my eyes, ready to garrotte the person who had run into me. So I yelped with surprise when I saw Kai half lying on top of me.

"Kai?"

He recognised me too. Rolling off me, I saw that he had his wrist wrapped around a lead like I had done, and a cocker spaniel on the end, watching us.

"Damn dog!" he yelled at it, wrenching the lead from around his wrist.

I staggered up, snatching at Sniffler's lead as he began to slink away.

"Oh no you don't," I snapped.

Tala and Johnny had tears of laughter in their eyes.

If only I had a killer hyena or something on the end of this lead, instead of a dopey Labrador with fleas.

Kai swore at Tala and Johnny and eventually they tripped off, still laughing.

He turned to me, the anger from both the dog and his ex-best friends burning in his eyes.

"Sorry," I said, automatically.

I really need to get a spine, it was _him_ that ran into _me_.

He grabbed hold of his own dog's lead and said, seeming to calm down, "Sorry I ran into you,"  
I patted his dog on the head. It wagged it's tail, it's little tongue lolled out and it nuzzled my hand.

Kai scoffed.

"What?"  
"Nothing," he mumbled, folding his arms across his chest moodily.

"Where are you heading?" I asked.

"I'm picking Max up from his guitar lesson. It's just along the road,"  
"Mind if I come?"  
"No,"

He began to walk off, so I had to trot to keep up with him.

"Does Max play the guitar?"  
"No, the flute," Kai snapped, "Of course he plays the guitar, why else would he be at a guitar lesson?"

I raised my eyebrows. Geez, the guy was moody! This was probably the first conversation I had had with him ever since I became acquainted with him, and he's being like this.

It was a stupid question though, I suppose.

"Do you play the guitar?" I asked, determined not to let the guy psyche me out of a conversation.

"Yes,"  
"Do you have lessons?"  
"Yes,"  
I rolled my eyes.

That guy was _not_ Mr Conversationalist.

We stopped outside a large house covered in ivy.

Max was standing on the front steps whistling, a guitar case in his hand.

"Hey!" he cried, grinning from ear to ear.

How someone like Max could live in a house with someone like Kai, was a mystery to me.

He ran down the steps to meet us.

"Hey Ray, didn't expect you to be here,"  
"I met Kai when I was walking this thing," I said, jerking a thumb to Sniffler as he tried to scare Kai's dog.

We walked back home, talking amiably along the way. I told Max about being hounded by Johnny and Tala. He shook his head.

"Those lot are a complete bunch of idiots sometimes,"  
I nodded.

I still hadn't told them that I was related to Lee. I suppose I didn't want to remind myself that I had something to do with that idiot, but it must look odd that Lee has is so bent on making my life a living hell.

I reached my house door, when an idea struck me.

"Hey, you don't know of anyone who wants a guitar, do you? I'm selling mine and I've had no luck so far,"  
"You play the guitar?"

"Used to," I said, trying not to wince.

First the pictures, then the CD, then the guitar.

The old 'burying the memories' thing is really not working.

"Well, I'm sure our guitar teacher would want a spare. I'll ask him at our next lesson,"

'_Our_ guitar teacher…_our_ next lesson' I thought, as I waved goodbye to the pair and they set off with Pirate dragging Kai along.

By 'our', did he mean him and Kai? If he did, then why hadn't gone this time?

I shrugged it off. I was probably trying to find the littlest of things to feel mysterious about because I was bored.

It was probably nothing.

"Kai!"

"What!"  
"You smashed my desk!"  
"I did not!"  
"It's in half! You kicked it in half! What the hell did you think you were doing!"  
"You know I have no idea what I do!"  
"I am so sick of that excuse! You've broken my desk in half Kai!"  
"I'm sorry!"  
"You're not!"  
"Stop whining!"  
"I am not whining!"  
Max stormed into Kai's room, furious. He found his older brother sitting on the floor nursing his ankle.

"Was that from kicking at my desk?"  
Kai ignored him, keeping his eyes down on his ankle, rubbing to try and rid the pain. He felt guilty about wrecking something of Max's again.

But as he said, he couldn't help it.

"Kai?"  
"What?"  
"Was it?"  
"Yes," he grumbled, letting his ankle go.

"I'm sorry Max," he said, looking up.

Max sat down in front of him.

"I know you are,"  
There was a silence. Eventually, tired, and pretty much forgiving Kai, Max leant against his older brother and yawned.

"Do we have to go to school tomorrow? Mum won't find out,"  
"She will,"

Judy had been called out on an emergency at the hospital, and said she wouldn't be back until the following afternoon. So Kai was in charge from Sunday through to Monday afternoon.  
"But I'm so tired. Can't we just have the day off?"  
"I'm already in enough trouble for truanting as it is,"  
They stayed quiet for a while, and Max began to doze off, until Kai spoke.   
"Max?"  
"Hmmm?"  
"You do realise that I really don't want to mess up your stuff, don't you?"  
"Yeah, sure I do. It's just a little hard to accept when your desk has been split in half. Don't worry about it. It's a good excuse to get a new one,"  
Kai smiled.

He could at least rely on Maxy to be forgiving of him, and to be there for him. Everyone else who had promised, had broken their pledge long ago. Not only that, but they had turned on him as well.

He thought about Tala and Bryan and the rest of his ex-friends. How they used to be so supportive of him when he was down, when things went wrong, and how he himself returned the favour.

Now, they wouldn't even look at him civilly.

He had feared that Max would leave him too, turn his back on him.

But the younger boy had stuck with him, been the brother that he had always promised to be. Kai looped an arm around Max as he felt him slump against him, deep in sleep.

He felt he didn't deserve Max's brotherly love. But it was the fact that it was there that kept him going.

I always felt I never deserved Lee's friendship, when I realised I had lost it. I kicked myself for not being a stronger friend, a stronger relative.

As soon as I arrived in America and found Lee turning his back on me, I knew I didn't deserve his friendship anyway.

I don't know how.

I just came to that conclusion, and it's stuck with me. I don't deserve his friendship anymore, and I'm too tired in the mind nowadays to figure out why, I've just let the theory take over me.

And now, sitting in my room with my memories tucked in their box in my wardrobe, I have come up with another theory too, that's left me hollow:

It's better to know that someone's love is there, even though you feel you don't deserve it; than think you don't deserve someone's love, and have to face the fact that it isn't even there anyway.

Aw, a bit of brotherly bonding there! And also a bit of angst. Soon, I'm going to have to put in some more violence!

Next chapter will be more violent, I think.

Anyway, please review, and tell me what you think, because I'm not sure about this chapter at all, it seems a little pointless!

I'll start working on the next one to make up for it!

TTFN


	7. Chapter 7 Illness and Danger

Thank you again Cinder Fox! And, actually, I don't think Tyson will be in it. I can't find anywhere to put him in. But, you've given me something to think about!

Monday to Max, Kai and Rei, was an ordeal. All three were tired. Rei looked harrowed, and not only avoided Lee like the plague, but also swayed from having to answer any questions about why he looked half-dead.

In math, he sat slumped across his desk, his head resting in the palm of his hand, his raven hair dishevelled, his eyes slightly reddened by lack of sleep, and he would open his mouth for a small yawn every few minutes.

"Kon, am I keep you awake?" his math teacher snapped, after a particularly big yawn from Rei.  
"No Sir,"

"Then sit up and pay attention,"

Rei sat up, but barely had the stamina to open his eyes fully. The teacher gave him a studious look but didn't say anything, and continued with the lesson.

Rei slipped off into a deep sleep then, but was woken by the sounds of someone entering the classroom.

He watched, bleary-eyed and not really registering anything, as Max walked to the front of the class, spoke quietly to the teacher, then sat at the desk in front of him.

Rei blinked, clearing his mind.

Where had Max been?

Rei had saved a seat in math like he usually did for Max. But Max hadn't turned up. So the Italian boy Enrique had sat in his place instead.

Rei listened to the Italian now, as the boy leant forward and whispered to Max (Rei had no idea Enrique knew Max, or that Max knew him) "Pst, Max,"

Max turned around.

I was surprised to see his eyes were bloodshot.

"What's wrong? Are you OK?"

Max nodded, and turned back around.

Rei frowned.

He wanted to say something to Max, ask him what was wrong, but the teacher had turned at Enrique's hushed whispers and was giving him a glare.

As Rei sat back to contemplate things, he could hear Enrique talking to his French pal across the aisle.

"Well, I don't know, he just got pulled out of art twenty minutes early,"  
"Has something happened at home, do you think?"  
"I don't know. But the receptionist told him he needed to hurry and bring his things with him. Max looked like he had no idea what was going on and just followed her,"  
"What do you think has happened?" another voice joined in from behind.   
"I don't know,"  
The teacher barked at them to shush, and the conversation broke up.

Rei watched Max as he put his head down on the desk. As the class began to get themselves ready, noisily, for an exercise, Rei saw Max's back shudder as if he was crying.

'What's wrong?' Rei thought, wanting to comfort his friend, 'What's happened?'

Max sped out of math as fast as he can. He needed to go somewhere quiet, where there wasn't an entire class gawking at him and asking him questions.

As he pushed his way through the corridors, he swiped his sleeves across his eyes, sniffing.

"Max!"  
He carried on walking, not really hearing the voice.

He turned into his locker corridor.

There as no-one there, and he breathed a sigh of relief.  
"Max?"

He turned just in time to see Rei skidding around the corner.

"Max, what's wrong?"  
Rei could see the bloodshot in Max's eyes was definitely from tears, and that he hadn't been overreacting or hallucinating.

"Rei?" Max asked, his eyes were welled up with tears and he was seeing blurry. He wiped them again with the back of sleeve, but it didn't work. More kept coming.  
"Yeah," Rei said, softly. He stood close to Max, worry masking his face.

"What's wrong?"

"Kai," Max said, choked on his tears.

Rei frowned, "What do you mean?"  
"Kai he's…in hospital,"  
Rei had to play that back again to himself.

"W-When did that happen?"  
"This morning. Before math. I was going to go and see him but I can't,"  
Max looked so upset. His eyes brimmed and Rei knew it was taking everything for him not to start crying fully.

The pair had become quite close for the past month or so, as both were a) needy of friends and b) enjoyed each other's companionship.

So Rei felt inclined to comfort Max when Max crumpled and began to cry.

"Is he OK?"  
"Yeah. He should be,"  
"When is he getting out?"  
"Tomorrow, hopefully,"  
"Well, that's good isn't?" I could hear Max twiddling the cord between his fingers.

"Yeah, but it depends if he can,"  
"Max?"  
"Hmm?"  
"Can I ask what's wrong with Kai? I mean, I know he's ill but…what from?"  
I could hear Max sigh.

I switched off my stereo, which had been on pause, and switched on my desk lamp, lying on my bed and staring up at the ceiling.

My hair fell everywhere around me. I had taken it out today to wash it and it was slowly drying. Damp strands still stuck together, but the rest of it cascaded over my shoulders and around my head. I must look like I'm leaking oil from my head.

I had been talking to Max for a while. I had comforted him at school, and eventually he had gone home just after lunch.

He rang me when he got the news that Kai was better.

I was glad. It made me feel like I really was his and Kai's friend.

"Well…it's kinda hard to describe. It's just…he gets run down, really easily. And if he gets too tired, he'll collapse, and go into a sort of lapse. He gets seriously cold and if he stays like that for a long time, he starts to get bruises on his face and arms. And he has trouble breathing. The hospital can give him something to make him better, and he starts to get more life back into him. But it takes everything out of him and he's resting for a while. I…I don't know what it's called. Or what it has to do with. I…I've never been told, and I didn't want to ask,"

I was shocked. I couldn't believe Max knew so little about Kai's illness.

I'd always heard, from rumours, that Kai was ill. But I'd also heard that he had psychiatric problems too, which I don't feel like asking Max about.

I didn't want to pry, but it would be interesting to know the truth.

Maybe it had something to do with Kai being adopted, I don't know.

But I promised myself I would find out, then tucked the thought at the back of my mind for later, and returned to the present.

"Can I ask you something Rei?"  
"Sure. Shoot,"

"Why did you move?"  
…Ah…

"I…I had trouble, at my old school,"

No point in lying. But no point spilling my guts and heart about all of that. Not now. Later.

I've promised myself that, when anyone has tried to help me. My family, counsellors. Everyone has asked and I have always put it off until later, and when later comes either they have given up on asking or I am too scared to even think about it.

But I will do. This time. I will tell Max the truth one day.  
"How do you mean?"  
"Well, I fell into the bad crowd, at school. Things…happened, and I don't really why I let them but…I left, to get away from it. And the closest place to us was Clerkdale High,"  
Max dropped it at that .

We carried on with a friendly conversation for another forty five minutes.

As we said goodbye, I promised I would go over tomorrow to see if Kai was alright after school. Max said he was glad, which made me feel better. I always felt odd asking myself over. But I wanted to see how Kai was.

I put the phone down, hoping Kai would be well enough.

I still didn't understand Kai's illness but, all things comes to those who wait.

I sat up, stretched, and as I passed my wardrobe to get to my desk, I felt a chill in my spine.  
The photos, they were lying in a shoebox buried underneath a few old rucksacks and blankets at the bottom of my wardrobe. I shook them out of my head and switched off my desk light, ready to go to bed and sleep.

But I couldn't rid a feeling in the pit of my stomach, and outside, I could hear thunder striking.

A bad omen.

I sighed and crawled into bed.

I wish I would stop having those.

"Hah!"

Blood burst from the swollen lip as harsh contact was made by a bunched fist.

The crowd roared, either in celebration or angry despair. The audience hollered at their chosen fighter, rallying him off.

The one most injured staggered, away from his younger opponent.

The boy swaggered forward, smirking, and lazily punched the man in the jaw, sending him spirally backwards, and crunching against the concrete sides of the ring.

The air was filled with chanting and shouting, and the thick, choking smell of body sweat, heat and blood.

At the side of the ring, literally hanging over the sides, another boy wearing a beanie hat yelled support for the younger fighter.

Another punch, and the older fighter saw stars.

"Had enough?" the younger smirked.

The man gurgled a response through the blood drenching his lips. The other cocked his head to the side, like an inquisitive dog.

"Really? Well…good,"

He finished the man off with a roundhouse kick. The man flew back, cracking his head against the concrete sides, and lay still.

"The winner!" the referee cried, throwing the boy's arm up into the air.

A number of the audience cheered and whooped, but the rest swore and hissed.

"That's it, watch 'im and weep boys. That's it, hand over your money!" the boy with the flat cap held out his hands, and wads of cash and coins spilled into his hands as he collected the bets.

The boy vaulted over the edge of the ring to the boy with the flat cap.

"How are we going?"  
"Great," the boy with the money laughed, "Morgan you were great! Come on, we've got to get moving, you're expected at another underground arena in twenty minutes,"  
The changing room, which had once been a guard station for the abandoned railway station, was filled with laughter as a group of teenagers counted out the money they had collected.   
"So, first fight of tonight Morgan, and we have plenty of money. Win this one, and we're rich,"

Morgan glanced over his shoulder, smirking. His dirty, deep black bangs, tinged with electric green, shone in the light of the bare bulb swinging above their heads.

"Of course I'll win," he said, confidently, "I always win,"

"You are so stuck up," a girl with pink hair and golden-cat eyes spat. She sat on the old control panel, swinging her pink-clad legs.

"Hey Mariah baby, what's up?" Morgan said, trying to get his arms around Mariah's waist.

Mariah shoved him off, "Get off me,"  
"Look, you've been here for, what, nine months? You've got to of got used to me by now baby…"  
"Get off me, leech! I am sick of hanging around you! Why am I still here? I came to England to see my old best friend! You promised me you knew where he was and we would find him, you said you wanted to find him yourself!"  
"I do babe, and we are going to see him. We're inching our way there,"  
"Yeah, through all the underground fighting arenas in this country!"  
"We're nearly there Mariah, honest,"  
"Humph. Fine. Now get to your fight, I need to buy another ribbon for my hair,"

The man at the sign up station was bored. These underground fights were getting old. It was the same ten guys every night. They either lost, got drunk and were found lying sobbing in the gutter with empty pockets, or they won, got drunk, and were having fist fights all the way to the next underground arena, thinking himself fit for another win.

So when he saw this teenager walking towards him, the man sat up, eyeing him.

"Name?" he said, tapping his pencil against the clipboard.

"Morgan Demsey," the boy said.

The man scrawled it down.  
"Age?"  
"Seventeen,"  
"Ring name?"  
"Konman,"

Morgan corrected him as the man wrote it down wrong.  
"K instead of C? Oh, so you must be serious. A specifically written name for your ring name. How did that come about?"  
"Lets just say," Morgan said, with a smirk, "I had…someone in mind, when I came up with it,"

"Sure kid," the man laughed, liking the young fighter, "Straight down the hall and to the right. Good luck,"

The boy moved off.

The man sat back in his chair.

"'Konman'," he read off the list.

Poor guy who had had this kid name himself after.

That kid was pretty scary.

"Morgan," I breathed, as I sat up ramrod straight, sweat running down my face.

Another nightmare.

"Morgan," I said, again. The name wouldn't leave my tongue.

"Morgan,"  
I drifted back off to sleep.

'Morgan,'

Those memories just kept popping up.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhh.

Ahem.

Well, a bit more violence you could say.

TTFN!


	8. Chapter 8 Morgan and the photos!

A Senorita: Hey! Another chapter! I'm not sure about my last two chapters. I might go back and repost them later, but I'm going to keep going for now!

And for now, Tyson's not going to be in it, but I've decided he will be at he end. Morgan is my OC, so no-one go nicking him!

Ahem.

Thank you for the reviews everyone and

Thank you KaiJr91! And here's the update you wanted.

I used to believe it

I used to believe my dream

I used to believe that I did fit

In this world that's cold and obscene

Try me, see me, feel me, know me

Help me please, I need to be.

And phoenix prophecy cannot be true to me

I cannot raise from the ashes of destruction

However much I want that to be

I'd dream of life re-born

New and fresh, burning with soul

But reality slapped me with scorn

And pain has taken it's toll

Try me, see me, feel me, know me

Help me please, I need to be.

And phoenix prophecy cannot be true to me

I cannot raise from the ashes of destruction

However much I want that to be

Steel slits skin

My angry thoughts flare

I can feel myself rotting within

as I'm trapped in Hell's snare

Try me, see me, feel me, know me

Help me please, I need to be.

And phoenix prophecy cannot be true to me

I cannot raise from the ashes of destruction

However much I want that to be

Try me, see me, feel me, know me

Help me please, I need to be.

And phoenix prophecy cannot be true to me

Max and Rei walked home chatting idly. The day had been pretty much eventless, and Max had had a call in the afternoon from his Mum, saying Kai had been let out and was at home.

Standing on Max's front steps as Max pushed the key into the front lock, Rei could hear the sound of a dog barking.

Must have been the dog Kai had been walking, Rei thought.

They entered the house, both kids taking their shoes off in the hall. Rei let Max run on ahead. He knew how excited he was about seeing his brother.

Rei dropped his bag next to Max's, and moved smoothly down the corridor after Max, gazing around the house, taking it in.

There was a picture framed on the wall, and Rei stopped to look at it.

It was a picture of Max, Kai and Judy. It looked like it had been taken as a surprise photo by someone else, as none of them were posing and all three were in the pictures.

Judy was crouched in front of a fire, her slender figure covered in a jumper and jodhpurs. She seemed to be stoking the fire, the flames causing patterns to ripple across her face. Behind her was Kai and Max, sat curled up on the sofa, a blanket thrown over them. Max was snuggled up to Kai, his head dropping to the side to rest on his big brother's shoulder. Kai's head and dropped to the side too, resting on the top of Max's head. They were asleep, peaceful, content with each other's warmth, and the heat of the fire.

Rei smiled.

"Hey Max," Rei turned as Judy greeted her son.

"And hello Rei," Judy said, smiling, "Nice to see you again,"

Before Rei could reply, Max had began to bounce up and down, "Mum, Mum, can we go and see Kai,"  
Judy laughed, pushing her son down by the shoulders to keep him still, and flat on the floor, "Of course you can. But be quiet, and if he's asleep don't wake him. He's OK but he needs to rest for a while, and get his strength back,"  
Max nodded and turned, bounding up the stairs. Rei followed, slightly less elephant-like.

He followed the sound of Max's footsteps down a hall, and threw a door at the end. The light was off, the curtains drawn, and as Rei entered, he had to blink a few times to get used to the lack of light.

There was a bed directly in front of him, and sat up in it, leaning against the wall it was pushed up to, and wrapped in a duvet, was Kai. He looked like he had just woken up. His hair was tousled, those blue triangles Rei had been so intrigued about, contrasting starkly with his pale hue.

Max was practically garrotting his brother, his arms wrapped around his neck as he hugged him tightly.

"How are you?"  
"Fine," Kai gurgled, prising Max's arms off him.

"Have you just woken up?"  
"Yeah," Kai said. So Max leapt up and ripped open the curtains.

Rei and Kai winced against the sudden light of the sun, whereas Max was still beaming from ear to ear.

Kai looked surprised to see Rei, but not put out.

"Hey Kai," Rei said, smiling. Kai gave a nod as a hello, a small smile turning at the corner of his lips. Friends with his brother would never become the result of a death glare, so there was no point in being rude to someone who was a) friends with his brother and b) sort of friends with himself.

Rei noticed a fading bruise on Kai's jaw. Rei remembered Max talking about bruises forming.  
They talked for a while, until Kai slipped off into sleep.  
"Oh, wait," Rei said, just as he and Max were about to leave Max's room. He ran downstairs, ripped open his school bag, and pulled out the clothes leant to him by Kai.

He handed them to Max.

"They're washed," he said.  
"Thanks Rei,"

I saw Max talking to that Enrique boy again at break. I was wondering around on my own again, trying to find Kai or Max. Kai was back at school. He had been for a while.

He had taken up his official role as terrifier of the student population, which he was extraordinarily good at.

I bet most of the people here think he's a basket case. Sometimes, I do to. The lights are all on in the attic but I think there's also a mad person rocking in a rocking chair and cackling.

He's like marmite, I suppose. You either love him or you hate him.

You either know him or you cast him off as a mental case.

Oops, I'm drifting.

I rounded the corner to the vending machines, and saw Max laughing with Enrique and Oliver. And…I just sort of…panicked.

A spasm of dread-filled adrenaline shot through me, making me twitch. I suddenly didn't feel so good.

And I don't know why. Honestly.

I just sort of, blacked out and panicked for some reason. I turned and walked swiftly away, knocking into a few seniors who thrust their fists close to my face and swore at me for their Pepsi on them. I ignored them, carrying on.

I was oblivious to anyone.

I knew there was nothing bad about seeing Max talking to someone else. I knew how long he and Kai had been struggling to make friends. For years. And now he seemed to making some more…I should have been pleased.

But I wasn't. God, I feel sick with myself. Why was I overreacting?

But I just felt…left out, put out. I was Max's friend. And…I felt slightly unnerved by someone else having Max's attention. Max, the boy who I had made friends with. My first friend in a long, long time.

About nine months.  
All the rest of them are back in China. All three of them.

Lee was one of my friends, but…well, you know all about that.

And just as I sped away from the scene of Max laughing easily with companions as I still struggled to gain any sort of social contact with people, I ran head-long into Lee.

Oh, wonderful timing.

He gave me a look, but didn't say anything. He pushed me off him and kept walking. I frowned, watching him leave.

The corridor was empty. Nice and desolate, just how Lee liked it, so he could pick on me without being caught by a teacher or a concerned senior.

And yet he was just leaving me.

God knows what made me do it, but suddenly I was yelling, "Hey, Lee!"

Lee stopped, bristling.  
"What, Rei?" he said, between his teeth.

"I…I-I,"  
"What!" he roared, rounding on me. His eyes were bloodshot. He looked like he hadn't slept in a long time.

"N-Nothing,"

He stalked up to me. I packed off, but his hand snatched out and caught the front of my shirt.

"Listen to me," he snarled, face close to my mine so that I could see the tendrils of red in his eyes. It scared me.

"If you think you can go back to your old games after all that shit nine months ago, then you can throw yourself off a very high building! I don't believe you Kon, all that whimpering and whining and crying over how emotionally distressed you were when it happened, and then just turning back round and going straight back to them. _And _getting them to work for you. Just because you can't face me yourself doesn't mean you have to get your old friends to do it!"

"What! Lee, what are you talking about!"

And he spat a name in my face that stung me like a stab wound, "Morgan Demsey,"

I went cold.

"What?" then I went mad. I thrashed in Lee's grip, "What, when did you see him! Where is he! Why is he here!"  
"Oh, I bet you can answer those questions _yourself_ Rei," Lee hissed, holding onto me tighter, "Very funny my little cousin. Getting your old friend to pay me back for this rivalry at school,"  
"Lee I don't know what you're talking about! I haven't talked to him for months! Not since…not since I moved away from that school! From them! And I wouldn't ever get Morgan to do something to you! Why, what did he do!"  
Lee growled, and flung me down on the floor.

That image of Lee looking down on me stuck with me for a long time, his face tight with rage, rage I couldn't understand. Why was he always angry at me? Always.

"He's given me a hard time, that's what! Said you sent him, but he wanted to know where you are, so I told him exactly. So I guess you've been hiding from him. Pathetic!"  
"Lee-"  
"And _then_ he tells me where Mariah is!"  
I stared.   
"M-Mariah?"  
"Yes!"  
"She's in China. She always has been…"  
"No, Rei! Stop lying to me! You've known perfectly well where she's been all along! She's been with Morgan, trying to find you! Morgan said you sent her a letter saying her you want her to come over here and see you. And of course by then you had run with your tail between your legs, _pretending_ to be hurt by all those months!"  
"Lee he's lying! I never sent for Mariah! I thought she was at home! I had no idea she's been waiting to see me! I didn't know she had been with Morgan since then! I didn't know she was with him at all!"  
Lee kicked me. Hard.

"Stop lying to me!"

"I'm not! Lee listen to me, I'm not lying!"

He kicked me again.

I begged with him, tried to persuade him I wasn't lying to him. And all the time I was going cold, because this all meant Morgan was back into my life, twisting and turning everyone against me, like he had done before.

Him and my old friends were back, and I was being blamed for it!

I pleaded and begged but Lee wouldn't listen. He was furious that I had done that to my cousin, put her in a position where she was stuck with Morgan and that lot. He was angry that I had sent Morgan out to give him a hard time.

And I tried to tell him none of it was true. But when Lee's angry, he won't listen.

He kicked me one final time, the breath flying out of me.

"Next time you try and put up a stunt like that, remember I won't take it!"  
And he stormed off.

I crawled up, and went to hugging my knees to try and regain my breath.

Morgan.   
Morgan had done all of this. He had gone to Lee on his own accord, decided to beat him up for the hell of it and tell him I sent me. He knew Lee would go into a blind rage and come after me.

I gave a dry sob.

Morgan still wanted to hurt me, they all did. I bet every one of my old 'friends' where behind Morgan on his newest scheme.

And what had he done to Mariah! I had never sent a letter out to her to tell her to come to America. I bet he lied to her, telling her that he would be finding Rei soon anyway, and that she could tag along for the journey. He always did that with girls he met on the streets.   
And I bet the only reason Mariah went along with it was because she wanted to see me.

How long had she been with those guys, waiting to see me? Waiting to see if I was OK.

'And of course by then you had run with your tail between your legs, _pretending_ to be hurt by all those months,' So that must of meant she had arrived in America just as I broke away from my 'friends' and Morgan.

So that was…nine months! She had been with Morgan for nine months on her own! In a foreign country!

No wonder Lee was mad. I was furious. But he was being mad at the wrong person. I had nothing to do with it.

I cried into my knees. I didn't want Morgan to come back into my life, to hurt me again.

I was still recovering from the last time I was involved with him and his sick friends…

I staggered home at six. Feeling ill and faint. As soon as I came through the front door I burst into tears and collapsed on the floor. Mum and Shing came out into the hall. Shing helped me up. I think I was half-unconscious, but whatever else I was, I knew I was a wreck.

He took me upstairs and my mum put me to bed.

I can remember her kissing me on the forehead and covering me with my duvet, then all was black.

Kai knocked on the Kon's front door.

"Hello?"

"Hello. Rei left this in the pocket of the clothes I leant him. I came here to give it back,"

He held up a few dollar notes.

The woman at the door looked distracted.

"Oh. Do you think you could take it up to him? He's not very well, he's asleep, so if you could be quiet…"  
The phone rang. She dashed off, leaving Kai to make his way upstairs to find Rei's room.

As he reached the landing, he saw a family picture framed on the wall.

Rei, an older boy who looked very much like him, a man with black hair, and a woman who could of only been Rei's mother.

They were sat on a grassy patch of earth, smiling.

The older boy looked like Rei's brother.

'I didn't know he had an older brother,' Kai thought. He carried on along the corridor. He had no idea which one was Rei's room, so he checked them all. The first was the bathroom. The second was a cold, untouched room. It was perfectly neat, posters hung squarely on the walls and the desk uncluttered. The curtains were drawn, and they looked like they had been for a long time.

The next room, was Rei's.

Well, Rei was lying asleep in the bed that was inside it.

Kai stepped in, making sure he didn't wake Rei up, and dropped the notes onto his desk. He paused, watching Rei sleep. He looked quite ill actually. Pale, and feverish.

Kai sympathised. He knew how it was to be ill.

Just as he was leaving, he tripped up over something, something that was lying by the wardrobe. Kai bent down to pick it up.

A shoebox.   
It was painted red, with a huge black cross on the front. Kai frowned. What was that for?

Rei shuffling his sleep made Kai jump, and he dropped the shoebox. He winced.

But Rei didn't wake.

He bent down, picking up the stuff that had spilled from the box.

Photographs.

Lots and lots of photographs.

Kai inspected them.

His eyes grew wider. He spread them all out, staring at them, his deep red eyes wide.

Eventually, all of them made a wide arch around him on the floor, each could be seen the light of the desk lamp.

Kai was horrified.

By the way, that bit at the beginning was something I wrote. How did y'all like it?

And how did you like this chapter? I hope it's not confusing.

If you did, I advice not to read the outline below, it may confuse you.

If it is then this an outline:

Morgan Demsey is a nasty character. He made Mariah tag along with him (nine months ago just as Rei left him ad his friends) as he and his group make money as well as trying to find Rei for themselves, promising Mariah all the time they are getting closer to Rei.

They've finally found Rei.

And Morgan has decided to start twisting things again, and has duffed up Lee, saying it was a present from Rei. Lee takes this as the truth and assumes Rei was lying about him not wanting anything to do with Morgan, and gets angry. He also gets angry when he finds that what Morgan did to Mariah, which Morgan insists was Rei's doing.

Now Rei's in trouble with Lee, he's being hounded by Morgan who wants to make his life a misery, and Kai is beginning to find out why Rei moved away from Morgan.

Phew.

God, I bet that still didn't make sense! It will do soon though!

Review!


	9. Chapter 9 A Story to Tell

Warning: there's a little violence and weird violence in this chapter, and a mention of drugs, but not serious drugs.

* * *

There were some regular photos. Normal ones you'd expect a teenager to have. A group of friends messing around, in what looked to be a warehouse, smiling and laughing.

Then…there were others.

A picture of a forearm with cuts up it.  
There was a picture of someone who looked to be wrenching someone's arm from their socket, laughing, the other being held down.

There were others of a bruised chest, a bruised stomach, more and more photos of abuse amongst a group of people.  
And one of them, Kai could see in a few photos, was Rei.

The only way to describe it was gang violence. The kind of thing Kai had heard so much about and knew was going on. But he never knew that Rei had something to do with this kind of violence.

"Kai?"  
Before Kai knew what was going on, he was bowled over, hitting the foot of the wardrobe hard.

He stood up, ducking as a fist flew to his head.  
"Rei!"

He grabbed Rei's wrist as the boy threatened to punch him again.  
"What are you doing!" Rei yelled, his grip extraordinarily tight on his wrist for someone who was supposedly ill.

"Rei I-"  
"What were you doing! Did you go snooping around and find those!"

"No!"  
Kai was having a job keeping Rei from pummelling him. He tackled Rei as the boy slammed tried to slam a knee into his gut. He grabbed hold of Rei's upper arms, holding on tightly.  
"Rei!"  
"Let go of me!"

"Listen to me!-"  
"What were you doing!" Rei was furious. He tried to get away from Kai so he could hurt him, he wanted to make Kai pay for seeing everything Rei had tried so hard to bury and forget.

"Rei, calm down!" Kai barked. He was going to hurt himself at this rate.

Eventually, Rei calmed, becoming limp in Kai's hold, his head dropping forward, feverish sweat on his forehead.

"Kai," he croaked, softly, his eyes screwed shut.  
Kai eased Rei to the ground, so that he was sat up against the bedroom wall.

"Rei…Rei," Kai got Rei to look him in the eye. The Chinese boy looked listless and exhausted, his eyes hollow. He looked haunted and harrowed, as if years of nightmares had thrown themselves in one big go onto his back, and had dug deep holes in his mind.

"Rei…what are those pictures?"

Rei looked pained. He shook his head, drawing his knees up to his chest and burying his face in them.  
"Rei?"  
"No,"  
"Rei?"  
"No! Stop it!" Rei screamed, "Leave me alone!"

Kai stared.

What was he to do? Despite what it looked like on the outside, the pair were good friends. And Kai couldn't stand to see Rei like this.  
Eventually, Rei looked up.

"I'm sorry Kai," he whispered. His eyes were brimming.  
"You've got nothing to be sorry for,"  
"Those pictures…I…really didn't want anyone to see them. I've hid them for the past nine months. I've never had the courage to get rid of them, I wanted to keep them but forget about them,"  
"Rei what are they of? When did that all happen?"  
Rei looked Kai in eye.

His honey-coloured eyes met Kai's crimson ones.

He was finally going to tell someone.  
Finally.  
After all these months.

And what did Rei feel?

Terror. Fear. He was terrified of spilling his secrets, but was fearful that if he didn't they would swallow him.  
Consume him.

_I tried to kill my pain _

_But only brought more_

_So much more_

_I lie dying and I'm pouring crimson regret_

_And betrayal_

"Kai…I've never told anyone this before. Can I tell you?"  
Kai nodded.

"Tell me Rei,"

Rei paused before he spoke. Softly…

"My family moved away from China. Me, my older brother Len, my step-dad Shing and my Mum. I never told you, but my cousin is Lee. And he and his family had moved to America about a year or so before us. We were the best of friends, Lee and I. But when he left, we stopped being in contact. He never wrote, or called, and I didn't speak to him. When I got to America, we visited Lee. We had moved in close by. I thought it would be a great place to start our friendship again but he wouldn't even look at me," Rei choked on tears, on his words, "I don't know why, but he wouldn't talk to me, he left me on my own. And two days after we arrive, my brother passed away. He had had severe food poisoning, and it turned into something worse. I felt so alone. Lee still wouldn't talk to me, I had no friends, and I had no brother now. I started at the high school not so far away. I couldn't seem to make friends. I found it hard. So I was amazed when Morgan came up to me,"

_playground school bell rings again _

_rain clouds come to play again _

_has no-one told you she's not breathing?_

_Hello I'm you're mind giving you someone to talk to _

_Hello._

"I was pretty much written off as a weirdo at school, but Morgan was so nice to me. He made me laugh. I found myself becoming friends with him. He introduced me to his friends. They took me in, we were all friends. I couldn't believe it. But I suppose I was just an easy target for them. I was still upset about my brother, I was lonely and wanted friends, so I did anything to keep their attention on me. Anything…"  
Flashback

_"Do I have to?"  
"Yes, now go and do it," _

_-_

_"When?"  
"Now, go now,"  
-_

_"Go on Rei! Do it!"_

_"Come on mate we're right behind you!"  
-_

_"Try some,"  
"No,"  
"Rei! Try some!"  
"O-OK,"_

End Flashback.

"I became known throughout Morgan's group of friends as someone who would do anything for Morgan. So everybody took advantage of it. I found myself doing things for people I didn't know, just to make sure I stayed in Morgan's good books. I was terrified of loosing a friend. Things got really nasty. And Morgan kept taking photos. When he hurt me, or made me hurt myself, he always took a photo. He gave me them, telling me it meant we were true friends. He'd give me presents, like my guitar. That's why I want it sold, it reminds me of everything I did, everything that happened.

After months of this, my mum and my step-dad found out. They were furious. They took me out of that school, and banned me from leaving my home. They were frightened of what I would do if was with Morgan. I became a different person with him. I didn't care when I was with him, I would do _anything_. So they kept me away from him, and we moved away, even closer to Lee. That was nine months ago. And a couple of months ago, I started at Clerkdale High. I didn't want anyone to know about what I had done, what I had let myself be dragged into. I didn't want to be cast out. I didn't want sympathy. I tried to be happy, to make friends,"

_If I smile and don't believe _

_Soon I know I'll wake from this dream_

Tears wet Rei's cheeks, and he clasped his knees tightly to his chest. A few bangs of hair stuck to his face from his tears and fever from fear. But he didn't feel them tickling his smooth skin. His eyes seemed glazed.

"And today…I've found out that my other cousin Mariah came to see me nine months ago, just as I moved away. She met Morgan and he promised her that they were moving down this way to find me anyway, so she could tag along. And now Morgan's here. But I don't know where Mariah is. I hope she's safe," Rei gave a little sob, his body shaking, "I don't trust Morgan. I don't know if she's safe or not. And now Morgan's here. He's already being trying to hurt me again. Making it out to Lee that I never snapped out of being loyal to Morgan,"

Rei shook as his sobs took hold and he hid his face in his knees, "I can't handle Morgan again. I'm not strong enough. I don't want to go back to it all, I don't want to do the things I did back then. But Morgan will make me. I know he will,"

Rei felt an arm around his shoulders, and as he sobbed he moved close to the warmth of Kai's body.

Kai had no idea why he was hugging Rei. It was just…when Rei talked about Morgan, and everything that had happened…he had looked so vulnerable. Expose and alone. He had stripped down the walls he had built around himself to keep people from seeing how vulnerable he was really, to prevent from being used again.

Now the walls had fallen Rei looked so naked to Kai. Stripped off his security. Bare and exposed.

And Kai knew that feeling, all too well.

_I wake up in the morning  
Put on my face  
The one that's gonna get me  
Through another day  
Doesn't really matter  
How I feel inside  
'Cause life is like a game sometimes_

_But then you came around me  
The walls just disappeared  
Nothing to surround me  
And keep me from my fears  
I'm unprotected  
See how I've opened up_

He held Rei until the sobs had gone from his body, then made Rei look him in the eye again.

It was that fact, that he knew how Rei felt, that made him say what he said next. Something out of character for Kai, but heartfelt.

"Rei, I won't let Morgan get to you again, do you hear me? And nor will Max. You do realise we're you're friends, don't you Rei? I know we've not been so close but we are friends. And I know Max won't let anyone touch a hair on his best friend's head,"  
"Best friend?" Rei said, with a little laugh. Even Kai smiled.

"I've heard Max say it. And Max doesn't talk lightly about friendship. Together we've missed too much of it,"

"I didn't know you had a heart Kai," Rei laughed, wiping away his tears. Kai smirked.  
"We've all been hurt Rei. But it's not an excuse not to help,"

"Thanks Kai,"

(A/N: yes, Kai is a little OOC but…I don't know really. He has been a little bit OOC for most of this fic. But hey ho)

I slept better that night. Kai left for home, with his usual stoic expression fixed upon his face. Kai had slipped so out of character in front of me, but I realised that really was him. And I didn't mind if it was only brief. I kind liked the mix of the icy stoic enigma and the boy who cared and protected.

The latter side of him, reminds me of my brother.

Walking to school, I encountered Lee. On his own.

My stomach clenched with fear. What if he tried to do what he had done to me last time we met alone?  
"Rei,"

Lee's voice was serious and strained.  
I bit my lip, waiting in dread as he walked up to me.

I closed my eyes, waiting for a strike…

But felt none.

Was I delirious, or did Lee just not beat me severely for being in his range of vision?  
"Rei,"  
"Lee?"  
"We need to talk,"

* * *

A Senorita: oh no, I think my chapters are getting worse! I need some reviews to know what you guys think though!

TTFN


	10. Chapter 10 Suspicious Kai, note, and Lee...

Hello! Sorry I took so long updating. But I've been quite sidetracked for a while. My little puppy hasn't been well, we have to keep taking her to the vets, and we're all upset, and my friend came around for the week so I didn't have time to get on the computer then and I had coursework and….phew! Life has been hectic!

But anyway….

Thanks for the idea KaiJr91, I'll use it! And I give the credit to you.

**Catgurl2004** -Yes, Kai was surprisingly nice to him. I might have a chance to slip something later in that explains that, but really they're just good friends, just that they don't really show it on the outside because they're not used to it. I'm going to have to make that visible. OK, I'll but burn in.

See, I can be surprisingly nice!

**darksaphire**, thank you for your review. You're right, looking back at it I can see what you mean about Ray. But I think I am going to go back and change a few of the chapters a little so I could tweak that then! I do know what you mean though. Thank you!

**MalukuBeybladeGirl **yeah, I know, Ray is OOC. -sigh- ah well, you can't have everything with my writing! I'll try from now on to keep him in character. And yes, Tyson can ruin a story quite a bit, can't he!

Disclaimer: I don't own the lyrics in this chapter. The first lyrics are from Usher - Burn. I picked bits and pieces out, I know I did, so don't sue. And once again, I do not own Beyblade

…

sigh-

_It's gonna burn for me to say this  
But it's comin from my heart  
It's been a long time coming  
But we done been fell apart  
Really wanna work this out  
But I don't think ya gonna change ya  
I do but you don't  
Think it's best we go our separate ways  
Tell me why I should stay in this relationship  
When I'm hurting baby, I ain't happy baby  
Plus theres so many other things I gotta deal with  
I think that you should let it burn_

When your feeling ain't the same and your body don't want to  
But you know gotta let it go cuz the party ain't jumpin' like it used to  
Even though this might bruise you  
Let it burn  
Let it burn  
Gotta let it burn

_When your feeling ain't the same and your body don't want to  
But you know gotta let it go cuz the party ain't jumpin' like it used to  
Even though this might bruise you  
Let it burn (let it burn, let it burn, you gonna learn)  
Let it burn (gotta let it burn)  
Gotta let it burn_

_I'm twisted cuz one side of me is tellin' me that I need to move on  
On the other side I wanna break down and cry _

_I'm twisted cuz one side of me is tellin' me that I need to move on  
On the other side I wanna break down and cry _

Ray gaped.   
"W-What?"  
"We need to talk, Ray. When?"  
"Erm…after school?"  
"Fine,"

And then he was gone.

Ray shook his head, swiping away the thoughts that floated in his head, and headed towards school. Lee was going in the opposite direction, probably planning to bunk off. Ray remembered the days when he was always bunking off school.

He sighed and rubbed his forehead. He really would have to stop going back to that. He had had a bad enough time as it was remembering all of that.

"Hey Ray,"

"Hi Maxy,"  
Max gave a small smile, an almost sad one, "Kai told me, you know,"  
"I know,"  
"Good,"  
Ray was glad that Max didn't behave any differently around him. Although Ray looked and felt half-dead, Max chatted on about his new guitar pieces, a letter from his Dad and Kai getting better.

"They've found something to control the illness," Max said, cheerily, as they entered history class.  
"Really?"  
"Yeah. Well, to prevent it from having the attacks when he's exhausted as often. Pills, I think,"  
"Is Kai in school today, I haven't seen him?"  
"He's here, but he's got art now,"  
Ray sat down at the desk he and Max sat at.  
Ray still hadn't mentioned how awkward he had felt about Max talking to Enrique and Oliver. He tried to ignore the feelings about too.

And that was pretty easy, as Enrique and Oliver weren't in their history class.

Just Bryan and Tala, and a couple of other people who still thought Max was a weirdo, and ignored Ray.

Bryan and Tala sat right at the back in the corner, which was lucky, because Max and Ray weren't in their throwing range as they sat by the window in the middle of the classroom.

Ray was just drifting off into an open-eyed dozy coma as the teacher went on about American history, when he felt something like paper being pushed against his elbow, which was rested on the windowsill.

He looked down. A piece of paper had been pushed against his elbow, through the open window. Ray startled, leaning over to the window to look down below to see who had put it there.

No-one.

Was this a prank?

Thankfully, no-one had noticed him, so he picked up the note and opened it.

The handwriting was neat, almost like printed writing, and written in biro.

It said:

_Ray_

_I am sorry that I cannot tell you this in person, but I would rather write this out to you in letter:_

_Morgan is planning something. He's planning to find you, and when he finds you there will be trouble. He's going to try and find you on your way to your marital arts lesson tonight. _

_Now that I've warned you, for God's sake don't get injured, I do not like wasting my time. _

_Stay safe_

RAY'S POV

I kept reading the note all day. Who was it from?

How did they know that I had a martial arts lesson tonight? How did they know that Morgan was planning to get me? How did he know me?

I spent the rest of the day in quiet contemplation, going over the note in my mind, which eventually I had learnt off by heart.

At lunch, Max seemed to be on a bit of a sugar high.

"It was _amazing_!"  
I laughed, "Max you're amused or amazed by anything,"  
"Well it really was amazing! He knocked right the way through five wood blocks! It was awesome!"

I couldn't help but smile.

"Yes Max, I'm sure it was, but swallow your food! It's like looking into a swirling vortex of terror,"

Max said something through his meal, but I haven't the faintest idea what. I covered my face with my hands as if trying to protect myself from a nearby bomb explosion.

"Max! That's disgusting,"  
I felt someone sit down beside me. It was Kai.

He didn't have any lunch.

He threw his bag down onto the floor under the table.

"I thought you were at basketball practise?" Max asked, frowning.

Kai muttered something and grabbed an apple of Max's tray. Max cried out in protest but before he could snatch it back Kai bit into it, and leaned back in his chair so that Max couldn't reach.  
"Why aren't you at basketball practise?"  
"Never mind," Kai said, curtly. I knew Max was fishing in dangerous waters when he persisted with Kai not going to basketball practise.

"Max," I said, in a warning tone.  
Max flickered his gaze briefly over me, but ignored me, and went back to having a go at Kai.  
"Max, stop it!" I cried, after a while. The pair of them were arguing, and Max still insisted on prying.

Kai looked surprised at me yelling at Max.

Max stared at me for a minute then turned away from Kai.  
"Fine," he said, "But I don't see why you can't tell me," Max grumbled.

Before Kai could put satisfied smirk on his face after winning over Max, Max's hand had snatched out at the apple Kai had taken from him, ramming the entire thing in his mouth at once.

I burst out laughing as Max said, through a huge apple rammed in his jaw, "Ha, ha, look who has the apple now,"

It kind of came out like:

Ha, ha, ug hufs, ot, er apple wow.

"I think my jaws broken,"

"No wonder," I laughed.

Max was rubbing his jaw, as if putting a load of friction on it might make it feel better. We were at the lockers. The bell had gone a few moments ago, and everyone was piling out of their classrooms to get to their lockers. Max had already zipped past his, got his stuff, and met me and Kai at our lockers.

He moves like lightning that kid.

I was beginning to get nervous. I expected Lee to turn up any minute. I kept scrunching the note up in my hand, wringing it round and round my fingers.

The ink had nearly worn off the torn and ragged paper when I last looked at twenty minutes ago in the middle of biology.

Whilst Max moaned about his jaw to Oliver, who was walking past, Kai gave me a sideways glance from where he was pushing a history book into his locker.  
"Ray?"  
"Yes?"

"About last night…"  
"What about it? I was pretty amazed you were so nice to me," I joked, laughing to cover up the awkwardness about talking about me blubbering in front of Kai. I bet he thought I was a weed, but then again he was so nice to me about it. I honestly thought he'd back out of my room and run a mile.

Instead he held me, and made me feel at least slightly better.  
I never really knew we were that good friends, but I suppose now I think about it I have always had a good time around Kai and Max, I've always talked to them. Never fallen out, got through Johnny and Tala and Bryan and Lee's teasing together.

That might explain it.

And…I haven't had that many friends before. That bastard Morgan made sure of that, and I doubt Lee is going to tell everybody what a wonderful guy I am.

He's too busy parading around with his chest thrust out himself.

"Yeah, well, that's what happens when it's happened to you to,"

I was snapped out of my thoughts by Kai's voice as he answered my question.

By the time I had realised, and reacted, to what he had said, he had gone.

Max was dithering around, still rubbing his jaw.

"Are you coming Rei?"  
"No, I've got to see a teacher," I lied.

"Alright then. I'll call you tonight," Max said, as he ran off after his brother, nearly tripping over his bag.

I always told him he had the strap too long.

I shut my locker door, remembering Max stuffing the apple in his mouth and smiling.

So I jumped like a salmon when Lee came up behind me and said, "Ray?"  
"Whoa!" I cried, whipping around, "Hi Lee," I said, breathing heavily from my shock.

"You look tired," he said, eyeing me up and down like he'd never really seen me before. I gave him a look too.

"You look like a bat out of hell," I said, sort of forgetting this was my arch nemesis every since he ditched me.

He gave me a glare but said nothing.  
Probably because it was true.

He looked terrible.

His black hair was messy and stuck out everywhere. He could barely keep his eyes open, and they were slightly red.

"Ray, you do realise _why_ I want to talk to you, don't you?"  
"Not really. No,"  
"I..." he leant against Kai's locker next to mine. "I met Morgan, a few days ago,"  
"Yeah, you mentioned," I mumbled, remembering when Lee had kicked me down, yelling blue murder about me sending Morgan after him.  
"He told me that you had sent him. So naturally I assumed you had been friends with him all along, this really wasn't just a peer pressure type thing. But I don't believe him now,"  
"What made you change your mind?"  
He looked up at me, and our eyes met in the first friendly confrontation we had had in a long time, "Firstly, your reaction when I said it to you. Secondly, when I actually had time to think about it. I can't really imagine you doing that Ray. You're not an idiot. And then, thirdly…Kai,"  
"Kai?"

"Yeah. What do you know about Kai?  
"Well…actually, not that much. I know he's ill, I know he was adopted by Judy two years ago. And…that's about it,"  
"Well then you have a lot to learn. But just to show you what change my mind, I'll say that Kai has been in a pretty similar situation. We were friends back then. It was just when he arrived at Max's, and started here. The five of us were friends instantly. And he told us all about it, eventually. And I thought that this kind of what Ray's found himself in. And if Kai didn't lie to everyone around him about being hurt about it, and scheming behind people's backs with the guy who hurt him when everyone thought he was scarred by it, then I knew you wouldn't. Kai can be a scheming bastard when he wants to be, and even he didn't do it. So I knew you wouldn't Ray,"  
There was a pause.

He rubbed his face.

"OK, that made no sense, but I know what I mean. Kai didn't lie in a similar pretty similar to yours, so I knew you wouldn't. That's it…kind of simplified,"  
I let him keep talking.

"So when I realised you couldn't of sent Morgan, I tried to find him. I was angry, I wanted to screw up his pretty-boy face. But when I got the address someone gave me, I just found a note there. The place looked like it had been used not long ago, but it was empty,"  
I tightened my hold on my note in my pocket.

"It said…" Lee dug around in his memory to remember, "It said that I mustn't go looking for Morgan, that you, Ray, were to sort it out for yourself. And to warn you not to confront Morgan when he is in control of things. Don't meet up with him when he informs you, or find yourself alone with him. It also said that you hadn't sent Morgan, that Mariah was safe, that you didn't bribe her here and then abandon her with Morgan,"  
At that Lee let out a huge defeated sigh.

"So I'm sorry Ray. I should of known this was Morgan trying to screw me up. I should of known you wouldn't do that. Even though we've drifted apart over the years,"

His eyes looked back into mine.  
During the dumbfounding explanation he had been looking at his feet, a pained expression drawn across his face.

Now he looked me in the eye, his expression sincere.  
"Well, that's hardly my fault," I said, bitterly. I couldn't help it.

"I know. I'm sorry,"  
"Lee, why did you abandon me like that? You ignored me when I first came over, you ignored me when things were going wrong with Morgan…you ignored me when my brother died!-"  
"Ray, I'm sorry!"  
"I know! But it's a little late! I really needed you Lee. I needed you to help me like you always did when things went wrong. And you turned your back on me!"  
"I know! But…but I had a new life, and I didn't want to be reminded of what I had left behind! You were a painful reminder,"  
"Well, I'm sorry for that," I said, snidely, slamming my locker door shut which had been hanging open, "But I didn't ask to come over here. I wish I hadn't. If I hadn't, I wouldn't of had to find out why I shouldn't trust you the hard way,"  
"Ray, I said I was sorry! I know that can't make up for much! But I want to sort this out, doesn't that make it better in itself!"  
"Lee," I said, shaking my head, "Nothing can make what you did better. But it can make what's going to happen better. If you're going to be my cousin again, the boy I knew in China, then make it happen…I'd like that. But don't think it's going to change my thoughts of you in the past,"  
I turned away and left him.

And even though my last words to my cousin weren't exactly loving, I was smiling as I walked away. And I could hear Lee laughing, and feel the cheer radiating from him as he grinned.

Maybe when he becomes my cousin and friend again, he can't change the past and what he did. But I can predict he'll sure as hell make my future better.

I began to run down the corridor whooping.

Finally, I was beginning to get my old life back!

My cousin! My friend! We were going to be friends again!  
I cart wheeled.

People say you can't fix relationships that have fallen in a matter of seconds, but I don't think it ever really failed to the point of distinction!

Even the fact I had to think of an excuse not to get out of martial arts that night could dampen my mood.

I HAVE MY COUSIN BACK! WOOOOO-HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

_Well, the years start coming and they don't stop coming. _

_Back to the rules and I hit the ground running. _

_Didn't make sense not to live for fun_

_Your brain gets smart but your head gets dumb,_

_So much to do, so much to see_

_So what's wrong with taking the back streets?_

_You never know if you don't go_

_You'll never shine if you don't glow…_

_Hey now, you're a all star, _

_Get your game on, go play _

_Hey now, you're a rock start,_

_Get the show on, get paid_

_And all that glitters is gold_

_Only shooting stars break the mould_

_It's a cool place, and they say it gets colder_

_You're bundled up now, wait 'til you get older!_

_But the media men beg to differ,_

_Judging by the hole in the satellite picture_

_The ice we skate, is getting pretty thin_

_The water's getting warm so you might as well swim_

_My world's on fire, how 'bout yours?_

_That's the way I'll like it and I'll never get bored!_

_Hey now, you're a all star, _

_Get your game on, go play _

_Hey now, you're a rock start,_

_Get the show on, get paid_

_And all that glitters is gold_

_Only shooting stars break the mould_

_Somebody once asked _

_Could I spare some change for gas_

_"I need to get myself away from this place,"_

_I said "Yep, what a concept!_

_I could use a little fuel myself,_

_And we could all use a little change!"_

_Well, the years start coming and they don't stop coming. _

_Back to the rules and I hit the ground running. _

_Didn't make sense not to live for fun_

_Your brain gets smart but your head gets dumb,_

_So much to do, so much to see_

_So what's wrong with taking the back streets?_

_You never know if you don't go_

_You'll never shine if you don't glow…_

Those lyrics might not have much to do with the plot, but they're cheery and optimistic and I love that song to bits!

Anyway, review please!

And tell me what you think!

Apple Senorita-


	11. Chapter 11 Morgan's Suspicions

Wow, I haven't updated in a while! So sorry, but there's been I've been so busy it's not even funny. Coursework, D of E, exams, new animals. And a really, really sore hand. It's been hard to type! Anyway…

Chapter 11

RAY'S POV

"Please?"  
"No,"  
"Pretty please?"  
"No,"  
"Why not?"  
"Because I say so,"  
"That's not very reasonable,"  
"I don't have to be reasonable, I'm your mother. Now go and get ready,"  
"No,"

"Ray!"

God, she could have a song and dance about anything!

"Mum, I really don't want to go tonight! I've pulled something in my leg and I don't feel very well. I haven't had a night off in ages!"  
Mum eyed me, trying to see any visible signs of my sudden illness. She rolled her eyes, "Fine then Ray, have tonight off,"  
I gave her a quick hug then ran up to my room.

I was sat on my bed, wondering how much to flog my old guitar off to Max and Kai's guitar teacher to, when Shing came to my door with the phone in his hand.  
"It's Lee," he said, sounding stunned. I took the phone.

"Lee?"  
"You haven't gone tonight, have you?"  
"No,"  
"Good,"

And he hung up.

Typical Lee.

I gave Shing the phone back, who was still standing there.

"Have you and Lee made up?"  
"Could say that," I said, scrawling a number out on a piece of paper. He obviously saw I was more cheerful than I have been these past couple of weeks and sat down to talk to me.

"What are you doing?"  
"Oh, I'm thinking of how much to sell my guitar for,"  
"Sell your guitar?"  
"Yes, I'm selling it,"  
"Who to?"  
"Two friends of mine have a guitar teacher who they say will buy it from me,"  
"These two friends…are they those boys that looked after you when you hit your head?"  
I nodded.  
"Who are they?"  
"The smaller one's Max, and the other one is Kai,"  
"Are they related?"  
"Sort of. Max's mum adopted Kai two years ago,"  
"Oh. What happened to Kai's family?"  
I raised my head, "I…I've got no idea,"

"Well, I'm glad you're making friends Ray,"

I wasn't really listening, I was thinking about what he had just said. What _had_ happened to Kai's family? Who were Kai's family? I had no idea.

I hadn't really thought to ask. Maybe I hadn't known Kai well enough to ask about it, and the past few weeks, when we have been getting closer, I've been too preoccupied.

Hmm.

Shing left, and I was left thinking about Kai.

I had been swallowed up in my own self pity that I hadn't really noticed Kai, apart from when he held me when I had broken down in front of him.

I wonder why he was adopted.

NORMAL POV

"Max! Max!"  
Max ran to the landing and leant over, looking down at his mother with his blonde bangs framing his face, "Yes?"  
"Would you come downstairs a minute and watch your brother?"  
"Why?"  
"He's not very well at all. I need to go and get the doctor, for some reason the phone isn't working and my mobile's at the shop,"  
Max nodded, instantly worried about his brother. He ran downstairs.

"Now it's only down the road so I won't be a minute. Just watch over him, OK?"

Max nodded. He went into the lounge.

Kai was lying stretched out on the sofa. He had a blanket pulled over him, and he was panting heavily. He lay on his side, with his eyes closed.

"Kai, are you asleep?"

Kai shook his head, but didn't open his eyes.

"Are you OK?"  
Kai nodded.

"You don't look it," Max frowned. He put his hand on Kai's forehead. Said boy was too weak to protest.

"You're really, really cold Kai," Max said, worried. He got another blanket and put it over Kai. Kai flinched in pain, but Max didn't know what from.

Max could see bruises forming on his neck and jaw, where he usually got them.   
"Max?"  
"Yes?"

"Can I have a drink?"  
"Oh yeah, sure,"

Max leapt up, running to get one. Whilst he was gone, Kai sat up groggily. His head felt like it was padded with cotton wool, and as if a power drill was digging into his skull. He shifted the blankets off to look at his arms. Bruises dotted his arms. He rubbed a few of them, as if hoping he could erase them.

He couldn't believe it. All he had been doing was walking back from his guitar lesson. He had felt fine. Max had been chatty, the walk had been good. It had cleared Kai's head. Even an twenty minutes after the walk when he went to talk to Judy he felt fine. But about twenty _five_ minutes after the walk, he had felt dizzy and light headed. Judy had wanted him to sit down but he had said he was fine, and had promptly ran to the bathroom and was sick.

Then, things had taken the general pattern they usually did. He put a hand to his chest. God, he was having trouble breathing.

Max came back, and handed him the drink. Kai sipped it, but found it hard to drink as he felt so breathless. Eventually, he put it down on the floor and lay back down.

Max sat there, watching him worriedly.  
"Are you OK?"  
"I don't know Max," Kai said, wincing at the pain in his head. He closed his eyes. Even with the lounge being darkened by the curtain and no light on, he still had a killer headache.

"Is this from walking home?"

"I really don't know Max," Kai said, almost irritably.

Then the phone rang. Kai groaned and buried his head in the pillow.

Max reached the phone and picked up.

"Hello?"  
"Hello, is that Max?"  
"Yes, it is,"

"Hello Max, it's Sarah. Can I talk to Judy please?"  
"She's not here,"  
"Where is she?"  
"She's gone out,"  
"You know she's not supposed to leave you and Kai alone Max,"  
"I know, but Kai is ill and she's gone to get the doctor. Our phone won't call out,"  
"Ah. Is Kai OK?"  
"I don't know,"  
"Well, could you tell her I called? There's something important I'd like to discuss with her and Kai,"  
"OK. Bye,"  
"Bye,"  
Max cut the connection.

"It was Sarah. She wanted to talk to Mum so she could discuss something with you and Mum. I can't believe you got her as a social worker when you came to his country. She's such a…Kai? Kai? Kai!"

RAY'S POV

Ugh, that is it, I am completely useless at math. I am trying to get my homework done and it isn't working. I don't feel at my best either anymore. Because for some reason whilst I was struggling with my history, I got up and walked into my brothers room.

"Len can you help-"

Then I remembered.

God, I felt so stupid. How could I forget!

I knelt down on the floor in his room and hugged himself. I really wish I hadn't gone and strolled in like that, thinking he was there. It wasn't a nice feeling remembering he wasn't there anymore.

But now, I have more pressing matters to deal with…like my math.

Shing and Mum are watching the TV. I could ask them to help me. But Shing is terrible at math and my Mum is tired from work.

Fine, it'll just have to go on my little pile of homeworks yet to be completed.

So…what to do now? I need something to take my mind off things, about _all _the things that have happened recently.

The phone rang. I glanced across at it, lying on my desk. I stretched over and picked it up.

"Hello?"  
"Ray! Ray is that you!"

It was Max.

And he sounded hysterical.

"Yes it's me Max, what's wrong?"  
"It's Kai! Ray you need to come round!"  
"Why?"  
"He's really ill, I mean really ill! I don't know what to do,"  
"Have you called an ambulance?"  
"I've done that! But there's been a huge crash at the end of our street so they're going to have to get around or through that and it's going to take ages and I don't know what to do until then!"  
"Is your Mum there?"  
"No, she went down to the doctors and hasn't come back yet! She said she'd be quick but I just saw the accident just by the doctors, what if she's hurt! I don't know what to do!"  
"Alright, OK, OK, calm down! I'm coming round,"  
I grabbed my jacket and streaked out of the front door.

I really should stop wishing for something to take my mind off things.

NORMAL POV

Ray sprinted flat out, skidded around the corner at the top of the street and ran down the sloped street to Max's house. At the bottom, smoke chugged up into the sky, and Ray paused momentarily outside the door to see the rain helping the douse a blazing fire, mottling the colour of the flashing lights that showed ambulances, fire engines, and police cars.

Ray pulled himself from his revere and opened the front door.

"Max!"  
"Ray!"  
Max came out of the lounge. None of the lights were on, only the light from the fading evening showed up Max's worry stricken face.   
"Where's Kai?"  
"In the lounge,"  
Ray nodded, and followed Max back into the lounge

---

"Morgan? Morgan mate, we're going. Are you coming?"  
"No,"

"Oh. Right, see you then,"

Morgan didn't even bother saying goodbye. He lay on his back on his bed, the rain outside thundering against the top of the warehouse. The sound echoed in the vast, empty space.  
"How did he know?" he muttered to himself, "How did he know not to go to his lesson tonight? Did he know? Or was it a coincidence? No, I'm sure someone told him. He's never missed a martial arts lesson. But who told him?"

Some said talking to yourself was the first sign of madness. Morgan didn't care. Because talking to himself just then had given him an idea.

He glanced across at Mariah, who was trying to make a fire. Morgan smirked. He got up, and walked towards her.

Mariah glanced up to see Morgan walking towards her. She scowled and hunched closer to the spark she had going. He drew up beside her, but she ignored him. After a while, his quiet presence began to unnerve her.

"Morgan?"

Bit of a cliffy. I was going to continue but I have to go and revise for chemistry exam! I will update as soon as I've finished that though!

Review!

Byeeeeee!

Apple


	12. Chapter 12 I Hate Pink, Don't You?

Apple Senorita: Oh dear…..I haven't updated in a while, have I?…cricket cheeps…er…nervous laughter.

I'm sorry. burst into tears I've been meaning to update for AGES but I just…haven't.

I apologise.

Just to get back into the mood of the story, this will be a short chappy but hopefully quite good. It's mostly a series of flashbacks.

Disclaimer: read the first chapter, I have a life you know!...ahem

---------

_**Flashback **_

(A/N: this is the only flashback in this chapter that ISN'T Rei's. You'll guess whose it is within about four lines though!)

"Mummy! Mummy! Mummy," the little five year old clammered, trying to get the attention of the woman who stood above him scrubbing at the kitchen top.

"No Morgan, shush,"  
"Can I tell you about school! Listen, _please_!"  
"Mummy's cleaning Morgan,"  
Morgan sighed. She was always cleaning.

"Mum can I go out and play?"  
"Yes, whatever,"  
"When do you want me back?"

His mother threw down her cleaning cloth and turned, face ugly with anger as she yelled, "I don't care! Go and play and stop bothering me! I don't care where you go or when you come back! I _don't care_ you stupid little boy!"

The five year old swallowed and ran out of the room, dashing to the front door and out onto the street. A few other kids were playing on the road with a skipping rope. Morgan sat down on the pavement and hugged his knees. He imagined himself sitting out on the pavement all night until three in the morning, slowly turning cold like those tramps his mother hated in the main town. He imagined his mother cleaning and cleaning and cleaning and not remembering him until it was well into the early morning, as if some witch had put a spell on her that made her clean again and again. He imagined being left out in the cold. It wasn't very hard to imagine. It had happened so many times before.

**_End Flashback_**

_**Start Flashback**_

"Yo. Yeah you, long-hair,"

Rei looked over his shoulder at the group of boys behind him, beckoning him.

"What?" he asked, trying to hide his nerves as the one who had yelled approached him. He wasn't the biggest of the group, not the one with the most muscles, but there was something in his eyes that Rei knew made sure he was definitely some sort of leader.  
"And who are you?"  
"R-Rei Kon,"  
"Kon? Aren't you that family whose just moved in?"  
"Yeah. How did you know?"  
"My Mum's a gossip, she heard about you. And your brother. Shame,"  
Rei gritted his teeth and swallowed hard.

"Yes,"  
"Well, how about you have lunch with _us_ today, instead of hanging around here on your own, hey? We'll look after you. Come on,"  
"OK,"

"I'm Morgan. Pleased to meet you Rei-Rei,"

_**End Flashback**_

Rei checked Kai's temperature again. It was steadily going down.

Rei was relieved when, about ten minutes into his emergency visit, he saw there was a lot more colour coming back into Kai's face. The bruises were fading just slightly, but he was still shaking. His breathing was levelling out a little too.

"I think he'll be OK Max. We just need to keep watching over him,"

Max nodded. His face was still tight with worry, but he looked slightly more relaxed.

"You think?"  
"Yeah. He's got over the worst,"

Max managed a small smile.

"Good,"

"And the ambulance should be hear soon. I bet your Mum was helping out with the crash down there, she'll be back in a minute. She knows she needs to get back for Kai,"  
"Yeah…yeah," Max said, although fresh worry had come up on his face.

"It'll be fine Max. Relax,"

"Yeah, thanks Rei. Erm…by the way. At school, the other day, when you asked me to get your PE bag out your locker,"  
"Oh yeah, sorry about that-"  
"No, it was fine. It's just…a post-it-note fell out. I think it had been slipped in through the slats in the door. And it said…" Max's face scrunched up in thought, and he stuck his tongue out a little like he did in exams when he was thinking hard. The freckles of his skin danced, and Rei nearly laughed: he looked so much like a little boy.

"Oh, yeah: I hate pink, don't you? Love _Morgan_. I think. Was that the name?" Max thought to himself, not noticing Rei had gone as pale as a bed sheet behind him.

_**Flashback**_

"Play me something Rei-Rei," Morgan said, throwing himself down on the beaten, dusty sofa, front first.

Rei picked up the guitar, but fumbled for a minute, unsure of what to play. Morgan opened one eye.

"Well? Come on maestro, I'm waiting,"

Rei fleetingly wondered why Morgan talked to him like that, as if Rei should be expected to do what he said immediately.

"I don't know what to play,"  
"Anything. I probably won't know what it is, cos you never sing the lyrics. And the guitar on it's own rarely sounds like the song,"  
Rei thought a minute, then began to play. He sang in the words in his head:

_Feeling the moment slip away_

_You're losing direction, you're losing faith_

_You're wishing for some one_

_Feeling it all begin to slide_

_Am I just like you?_

_All the things you do, can't help myself_

_How do you feel when there's no sun?_

_And how will you feel when rain drops come, pouring down again_

_How will you be when there's no-one_

_Turning to face what you've become_

_Buried the ashes of someone_

_Broken by the strain_

_Trying to fill that space inside _

_Am I just like you?_

_All the things you do, can't help myself _

_How do you feel when there's no sun?_

_And how will you feel when rain drops come, pouring down again_

_How will you be when there's no-one_

_Don't ever feel_

_That you're alone_

_I'll never let you down_

_I'll never leave you trapped_

_Don't fall apart_

_Don't let it go_

_Carry the motion_

_Carry the motion back to me_

_Feeling the moment slip away_

_Feeling the moment slip away_

_How do you feel when there's no sun?_

_And how will you feel when rain drops come, pouring down again_

_How will you be when there's no-one?_

_**End Flashback**_

'I hate pink, don't you?'

What did that mean? What if it was something to do with Mariah? Something bad. Rei's frame slumped and he put his head in his hands. Max was too busy hanging around at the front door waiting for Judy to arrive back.

"Oh God," Rei mumbled, into his hands, feeling a huge lump rise in his throat, and an aching prickle at the back of his eyes.

"What are you crying about now?"

Rei raised his head.  
"Kai?"

Kai was lying across the sofa like he had been doing all of the evening, the blanket rested gently over him. His eyes looked heavy, but he was definitely away.

"Kai! Kai how are you feeling?"  
"Better. Where's Max?"  
"Waiting for Judy to get back. She went to the doctor's but there was a road accident down there,"  
"Is she alright?"  
"We haven't heard from her,"  
Kai paused a little, then nodded slowly.

"And what are you getting stressed over?"

"I…oh, nothing,"

_**Flashback**_

"Whoa, Morgan, slow down or you're gonna choke man!"

Morgan finished off the bottle with relish and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. The small crowd around him cheered. Rei laughed from where he sat by the crackling fire, watching as Morgan staggered, dropped the bottle and cackled like a madman.

When the sun had begun to set about an hour ago, when the party started Rei had at first felt cold. Morgan had made sure Rei kept up the spirit of things though, by handing him a bottle of vodka.

Morgan collapsed heavily down next to Rei, and gave him a drunken smirk.

"Warmer Rei-Rei!"

"Yup,"  
Morgan laughed outright and play-punched Rei on the soldier, "You can sound such a weirdo sometimes Rei-Rei. You make me laugh,"

Being drunk made Morgan laugh at everything. Either that or punch everything.

"Have a bit more to drink Rei-Rei, come on, you'll get even warmer!"

Rei jumped when something cold pressed against his lips and warm liquid gushed into his mouth. Morgan laughed as he force-fed Rei the alcohol. He stopped when Rei began to choke, and let him come up for air.

"Woo! Well done Rei-Rei!"

Rei sat there gasping, the drink splashed on his shirt.

Morgan smiled wanly and watched as Rei felt the affects of the alcohol taking place.

"I like being around you Rei-Rei," he said, with a ghost of a smile in his eyes, "You always listen to me,"

_**End Flashback**_

"Hey Rei! My Mum's back!"  
Judy entered the lounge looking very flustered and was covered in water.

"How is Kai?" she asked, breathlessly.

"He's doing better," Rei said, jumping up to attention.

"I can speak for myself Rei," Kai smirked, from where he was on the sofa.

"Oh Kai you're awake! Honestly Kai you got me so _worried_!" Judy cried. Whilst she went off on one a bit, Rei and Max went to the kitchen to make a meal for them all.

"Thanks for helping Rei. I was panicking too much,"  
"It's alright. Glad to help,"  
"So, what was that note about?"  
"Nothing,"  
"Oh. OK. I was wondering: what does 'I hate pink, don't you?' mean. Probably just a prank or something,"  
"Yeah,"

'I hope'

"AH!"

Rei leapt a mile in the air.

"What's wrong!"  
"Nothing. Ouch! I just shut my fingers in the drawer,"  
Rei let out a relieved chuckle, "You're so clumsy Maxy,"  
Max beamed and giggled, "Yeah, I know. I'm gonna have an accident one day! So come on Rei, I think I need your culinary skills,"

Rei set about with the meal, Max helping when he could. Rei pushed the note to one side of his mind. He was just glad Kai was OK, and that things had worked out alright, at least for that one evening.

---------

Apple: I refused to get out of my desk chair until I finished this chapter and now I have. YE-AS!

And I have everything planned for the next few chapters so they'll be coming soon!

TTFN!

(Hope you enjoyed and if anything didn't make sense just ask! R&R!)

AppleSenorita


	13. Chapter 13

AS:…………..

I don't really think you want to even _hear_ the reason for my lateness so I'm not going to bother.

But enjoy!

"Think fast!"

The corner of a maths book hit him square in the forehead

"Oo,"

The class sniggered.

Rei stared confused at the exercise book.

"Sorry Rei," the maths teacher said, "Pick it up and pass it to Kai behind you would you? Maybe if you were awake though, Kon, you might not have been hit,"

The bell went shortly after Rei being whacked on the head, and Rei swiped up all of his books and dropped them into his bag. He followed Kai and Max out of the maths room, the crowds around him blurring into one big mess.

Max managed to get himself tangled up in his gym and school bag. Somehow he had got them knotted at a really awkward position on his shoulder and one arm was all jammed up because of the bags pinning it to his side. Rei leant against his locker and stared unseeingly at the other side of the corridor. Kai, who had been allowed to come back to school, had become bored with Rei's quiet and constant look of thought. He slammed his hand into the locker beside Rei's head, making the poor boy jump.

"Whoa! Kai!"  
Kai had his hand on the locker by Rei's head, his arm extended so it barred Rei from running off on one side, and was looking down at Rei. Rei looked up into the husky lilac eyes of his friend.  
"Yes Kai?"

"Why are you spending your whole day walking around like a space cadet?"  
"Oh…sorry, I didn't know I was,"  
"Is something wrong?" Kai asked, tersely, a strand of grey/blue hair falling to bar his left eye.

"No,"

Kai retreated his hand and dug his hands into his pockets.

"Then don't mope around," he snapped, although not as viciously as Kai had sometimes spoken.

"Sure Kai. Sorry,"

"Oi. Rei," Lee's voice. He was on this own this time, without his usual bunch of lackeys. Max was still wary though, and glared at Lee, despite knowing he looked ridiculous with a gym bag wrapped around his forehead.

"Trying to make a new fashion statement Max?" Lee smirked (he couldn't help himself).

"Oh, Lee!"  
"Can we talk?" Lee asked Rei quickly, digging his hands inside his pockets and scratching at the torn lining inside them.

"Yeah, sure,"

Kai frowned. Max leapt up, and suddenly the catches on his bags broke so that the straps fell away from him and the whole mess hit the floor.

"Phew. Anyway: Rei do you think you should. I mean…"  
"No Max, it's fine,"  
Max raised an eyebrow, "Really Rei? I mean…"  
"Trust me Max, it's good. I'll see in gym,"  
"Oh…OK,"

Rei and Lee disappeared around the corner, and Kai and Max were left alone by their lockers.

"What the fook?" Max said, staring after the pair, "Didn't Lee like, try to suffocate Rei in his locker only last week,"  
"Come on, we need to get to gym,"  
"Oh but…."  
"_Now_,"

"Hey Max, pass me the wooden spoon,"  
Max pulled out the spoon and handed it to his brother, inhaling the smell of lasagne.

"Mm…smells brilliant! When's it ready?"  
"Not long,"  
Max clapped his hands and scooted over to the fridge to get himself a drink. He dug around in there for a while as Kai stirred the bolognaise at the stove.  
"AH! AH!"  
Max leapt away from the fridge yelling, and slammed the fridge door shut.

"What is it?" Kai sighed.

"There is something _living_ in our fridge!"

"_Living_?"  
"Yes, living! It's all furry!"  
"Are you sure it's not just cheese or something?"  
"I don't think so….its got bubbles all over it,"  
Kai opened up the fridge and leant inside. At the very back corner, was a little mountain of fur with an attractive pus-green hue.

"Careful Kai it moves,"  
"It does not move Max," Kai grumbled, reaching a hand in. He stopped though before actually touching it. He didn't believe Max for a minute but he had no idea what the hell it was.

"What is it?"  
"I don't know,"

Kai flicked it with his finger and it fell forward, showing a gaping hole with more fur and inside, although there were some slicks of sticky, running stuff up the sides of the hole.  
"Whoa, its like Alien or something," Max cooed, staring at the intruder at the back of their fridge. He grabbed a spatula from the same place he had got the spoon earlier and slid the mass of rotten…mass, onto it. He pulled it out carefully, balancing it in a slightly wobbly fashion on the spatula.

"It's yoghurt,"  
"What!"  
"It's yoghurt. Look, on the side. 'Farmers Best Yoghurt'. Cell by date….a year ago,"  
"We've had yoghurt mutating in our fridge for a year and we _never knew_,"  
Kai sighed and took the spatula from Max. He dropped the infested yoghurt into the bin.

"I feel sick now. I mean, how come all of the most disgusting things I have ever seen, always seem to come from our fridge,"

Kai washed his hands and went back to the meal.

"Mum should clean the fridge more. But she's never here,"  
"She's working,"  
"Yeah, but she could try and keep piles of mutating bacteria out of the fridge from time to time,"

Max sat down at the kitchen table to sulk.  
"But she's never at home,"  
Kai turned down the ring and turned to look at Max. He was half sprawled on the kitchen table, platinum blonde hair sagging over his eyes. His lips were slightly pouting as he sulked, and he poked with one finger at a splinter in the table his Dad had made years ago. It needed sanding. He sat down opposite him.  
"I know she loves us and everything, its just that the house is kinda falling apart, and she never notices. She's never here. She hasn't been to a parent teacher conference of ours since…well, since you arrived. That was my last one. And yoru first _and_ last,"

Kai didn't really care Judy didn't listen to his teachers often enough but Max made a point.  
"You know, that was one of the reasons Dad left her. She was always too busy. And then when Dad left…to stop thinking about it, she got even more involved in work,"  
Max had talked to Kai about his Mum and Dad divorcing not long after Kai had arrived at the family's home. But never in too much detail. And it wasn't as if Judy used Kai as an agony aunt.

"Have you told her?"  
"What, Mum? Yeah, I told her I want her to stay home more. But she just looked upset and went into the whole; I'm doing this to keep you in this house, and stuff like that. And I _know_ that. But it doesn't help,"  
"Your Mum's been around more than mine has Max,"

Max stared up at his brother, through the shafts of the sunset that slanted in through the slats in the blind. The whole kitchen was bathed in a warm light.

"I suppose,"  
A tanker on the nearby freeway made the house rumble.

"Have you heard where she is now?"  
"Last time I heard from her was last year. She was in Croatia,"  
"Same time one of us opened that yoghurt," Max smiled. He couldn't stand to see his brother mopey, and going down the road of parents was certainly going to do that to him.  
"Kai?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Can I have my lasagne now?"  
Kai shook his head and went back to the sauce.

"When I get older and become stinking rich, I'll get a cook," Max consented, sitting up, "And maids. And I'll move to the posh part of New York, and you'll have to come and visit me,"  
"I will?"  
"Yeah. Every week. And every single Christmas. That's what you get with family Kai, you're stuck with them for life," Max beamed, "And you can be an uncle, when I have a kid,"  
"Do you really want to inflict _that_ upon a young child?"

"You'd be a good Uncle, Kai!"  
"Set out the stuff for dinner Max,"  
Max rolled his eyes and began to set the table. They sat down to eat not long after.

"Seriously Kai, do you ever want to have a family?"  
"No idea," Kai grunted, flicking through the morning newspaper.   
"You must have _some_ idea! I mean, you like kids, don't you?"

"No idea,"  
"Are you evening listening to me?"

"Hn,"  
"Kai! You are so…nevermind,"

Max rammed a layer of lasagne in his mouth. They ate in silence for a few more minutes, the sounds of the freeway and the leafy suburb they lived in falling around them. The phone beeped quietly on the charger and the two boy's PE kits in the hallway were being attacked by the cat.

"Max?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Read that,"  
Max picked up the paper Kai was handing him.  
"Which bit?"   
"The notice about a missing person,"  
"Yeah,"  
Max read the print out loud, "This sixteen year old boy, pictured above on the left, has been missing for three weeks. He was last seen at his family's summer house in Connecticut. The boy has a tendency to run away and has run away for almost a year before. Last seen wearing black baggy pants, a plain green t-shirt and bare feet. Name: Morgan Demsey,"

"Look at the picture,"

Max peered at the picture. On the left, was a boy with black hair and electric green highlights. His face was on the slightly gaunt side, but his smile was full, and screwed slightly into a smirk. The picture was focused on his face but Max could see the crackling orange of a fire. Sat next to him was a boy with long raven hair, amber eyes, and a soft smile.  
"It's Rei! Wow. I wonder if he knows where his Morgan guy is. Maybe not, he would have told someone. Shall we show it to him?"  
"Do what you like,"

Kai went back to his meal, only temporarily unfixed about Rei knowing this missing person. Max carried on studying the pair in the picture a little more though.  
"You won't runaway again, will you Kai?"  
Kai didn't look up from his meal, despite the intense stare Max was sending him across the table.  
"Kai? You won't…you wouldn't run off again would you? It's just…looking at this, I remember having to do the same for you-"  
Kai got up, his chair scraping across the kitchen floor. He left the room.

"Kai! Kai, I-"  
Max ran after him, dropping the paper to the floor.

Kai was sat in the lounge on the armchair, probably purposefully for Max couldn't get near him.  
"Kai? I'm sorry,"  
"I was only gone for two weeks Max,"  
"I _know_. It just worried me that's all. I know you didn't want to hang around and you had only jus got here. Sorry, I shouldn't have been stupid,"

There was a moment's tepid silence.  
"It's fine,"

Max beamed and did the only thing he could knew he could do to break the sullen mood. Kai 'oofed' as the bouncing blonde male landed on his lap and wrapped his arms around his neck. Max was too goddamn innocent sometimes, did he realise how much taunting that would get if he ever tried that in public?

Kai slung his arms around the boy's waist just to keep Max happy.   
"You'd be a great Uncle Kai. And you could help us when we get mutating furry things at the back of our many fridges,"  
"You're pathetic,"

REI's POV

Do you ever get the feeling maybe you just should have gone back to bed that morning, and not bothered? Or is it just me? Surely since there's a something-billion population there must be more than a few of us to band together and have a few drinks and talk about our problems.

See what lack of sleep does to me?

I'm making myself over-caffeinated so that I don't have to think too much. Downstairs, my Mum's entertaining _more_ guests. People from next door. I think they drove.

I've been thinking a lot though, despite the amount of coffee I've been guzzling, and I've made a list of things I need to do: **One**, find out what the hell Morgan is doing with Mariah. I wouldn't trust that guy with my pencil case, nevermind Mariah. I don't think he would actually _kill_ Mariah but…I know that guy, and I still don't trust him with her…if that is the case…I've got that to figure out too. **Two**, work out what Morgan is going full stop. As mentioned above, I don't trust him. **Three**, find out who my 'protector' is. The guy who warned me about Morgan wanting to pay a little visit. **Four**, get Max a birthday present. **Five**, bury those photographs in the garden. **Six**, I'm going to go for a walk. I might go down to the warehouses, there's supposed to be people building clubs down there. Although I also did hear about Fighting Rings being built but I'll stay away from them, I'm not getting involved. Last time I went down there, when I first moved here, there was just a pile of dead rats and fish-smelling ropes so I need to go and see what's going on. Bet the rats don't appreciate the intrusions.

AS: I tried to be subtle there but it may not have worked….think about a certain rat whose been situated in a warehouse recently….


	14. Chapter 14 I spy you

Rei wandered past a group of surly looking men with missing teeth spitting phlegm noisily into the river. Lovely. He continued down the cement walkway. There were more people milling about further along the docks, and a lot of them not much older than Rei.

He peered between the torsos to see the entrance to the warehouse behind them. The door was painted bright green and had a number of random signs plastered to it, like a Give Way sign, and a sign for a parking lot. From behind the doors he could hear the sounds of shouting and music. Was this one of the new clubs? Interested, Rei slipped seamlessly through the crowd and slid down the side of the warehouse. This warehouse dwarfed the one next to it, but the other still blocked out the light as Rei moved between them. As he went further and further down, the sounds of music and shouting quietened.

'Maybe they only used the front part of the warehouse,' Rei mused, trying not to breathe in too deeply. The smell of cat pee was overpowering and making him feel nauseous.

Finally, a door. Rei listened for any noise behind it but heard one. He put his weight against it and pushed. Curiosity always killed the cat.

The door pressed against something as it opened, making a scraping sound against the filthy floor. He stepped in and peered around the door. A cardboard box, full of shoes. What was that doing blocking the door?

Rei shut the door behind him and stepped forward into the warehouse. It towered above and around him as an enormous, airy mass, the dirty evening light smudged at the windows. Scattered about the side of the warehouse floor were mattresses, books and clothes.

"People are living here?" he questioned, out loud.

On the other side, opposite him, the sounds he had heard before were louder.

'This must only be the back of the warehouse,' he thought, mind reeling at the vastness of a simple warehouse. It was more like an aircraft carrier!

He crossed the warehouse, and pressed his ear to the door in the wall. He frowned. There was the usual sounds of a regular club; music and the clinking of bottles, but also pained grunts, the smacking of fists and the whooping of encouragement. A brawl? Or an organised fight?

Rei curled his fingers over the door knob and pulled the door open, moving inside before too much light could spill in.

Everything was red. A red filter had been plastered over the overhead lights. Everyone glowed with a chilling blood red. The noise resounded in the almighty ceiling, rattling the windows.

No-one had noticed him and he merged with the crowd, watching and noting. There was a ring in the middle of the awesome space, made from wood and the old fishing ropes Rei had seen on his very first visit to the docks years ago. The ones that smelt of fish. Two men similar to the ones hocking the contents of their noses into the water were battering each other with their fists. The metallic smell of blood hung in the air with the red light, making a frightening companionship.

"Want a drink?" someone shouted into Rei's sensitive ears over the thumping music. He was grinning with an open, honest face. Rei felt the boy didn't really fit in with his surroundings.

"No, I'm good, thank you,"  
"No, come on, I'll get you a drink,"

'Date rape, data rape!' Rei squealed inwardly, before realising a) boys hardly ever got drugged with date rape, b) this boy was obvious younger than him and c) because of his young age, Rei could probably throw him and break his arm easily if he tried anything.

Was his age why the boy didn't fit these surroundings. The bar swung around the warehouse continually, disappearing out of Rei's sight into the back regions of the club. It was attended by about sixty or so men and women, flipping bottles, pouring glasses full and dancing along to the music, or else humming along.

"Beer please,"  
'Beer? I hate beer,' Rei thought, but didn't want to be rude.

The drink was shoved into his hands.

"How did you find the place?" the boy asked, pinning Rei with his eyes. A simple enough question, but did he need to smile so wide?

"Um…I was just on a walk. Wandered in,"  
"Met anyone else here?"  
'Does he want a favour or something?' Rei thought, clutching his beer. The smell of beer suddenly rose, and so did the awful smell of blood. The cat pee aroma somehow got into Rei's senses too and suddenly he wanted to gip.  
"Where's the bathroom?" Rei asked, unsteadily. The boys face froze momentarily, then his smile got impossibly bigger and his eyes lit up.

"I'll show you, come on,"

'I'm gonna draw the line at him holding my hand whilst I throw up,'

The bathrooms were to the back of the club, obviously built. They were made of large breeze blocks, some splashed messily with paint, others left grey. The floor was concrete and the doors smooth black, although already grafitied upon.

Rei stumbled to a cubicle and sat down on a toilet with the seat down, not bothering to shut the door. All he wanted was for the world to stop spinning. Maybe he should have had dinner _before_ going on this walk.

His guide sat on the row of sinks opposite Rei's cubicle.

"You OK?"  
"Yeah, just…I'm fine,"

The boy swung his legs like a little child on a wall.

"Maybe you should go outside. Fresh air and all. Want me to take you?"  
"What's your name?" Rei interrupted before the strange boy offered to call him a cab to take him and tuck him into bed.

The boy let a moments silence pass before saying, "I think you should maybe go outside. You've gone kind of green,"

"I'm fine, thanks," Rei said, trying to smile. He tried to be polite to everyone, however annoying helpful they were.

"Hey, what's this place called?"

"Oh, don't remember," the boy said vaguely, "You still feeling ill?"

"No…I'm feeling better,"

He was lying. He felt sick.

The door to the bathroom swung open. Rei couldn't see who had entered and personally didn't want them to see him, so he swung his cubicle door shut. He just had time to see his guide leap off the sinks, an expression of being caught in the headlights of an oncoming car on his face.

"Hey, look who it is!"  
Rei stood up, listening through the cubicle door. He leant around slowly. He still couldn't see who it was, the next cubicle's door was swung open.

"And hello, whose this!"

Before Rei could move someone slammed the next cubicle's door shut.

REI'S POV

I went cold. Physically cold, I could feel my veins freeze.

"Well hello Rei-Rei,"  
I opened my mouth, but felt the bile start to rise in my stomach and so shut it. My hands had gone all clammy.

"Morgan,"

"Aw, you remember me. How sweet,"

He hadn't changed. He hadn't changed at all. He still had those electric green streak in his black hair, that tiny scar above his eyebrow where he'd told em he'd had an accident with a tricycle when he was little. He was wearing his usual attire, black and green. He stepped forward. I took a step back, almost disappearing into the cubicle again. My guide took a move back too.

"Piss off Morgan," my guide snapped.

"Ooh, temper, temper," Morgan snickered. He gave him the finger.  
"Go. Away," he said, as if he were talking to a child, before turning back to me.

"So, still remember me then Rei-Rei? I assume you got my presents then?"

Those photographs.  
"And I hear your friend Lee's learnt to forgive and forget. I thought you said you'd given up on trying to be his friend anymore, Rei,"

When I didn't answer him I could see the flash of annoyance on his face. He hated people not doing what he told them to.  
"Come out from there," he said. I waited a moment before doing so. The other boy was standing slightly between us, eyes darting from Morgan to me.

I couldn't think of anything to say. So I blurted, "What does 'I hate pink mean'?"

Morgan threw back his lead and laughed. The four guys behind him, two I remember and two I didn't, began to chuckle.  
"Nothing Rei-Rei. If I were you, I wouldn't be getting worked up about _that_! I didn't come all this way to do something to Mariah, although if you don't start doing as your told I might have to. No…I came all this way to find you again. And if it wasn't for this idiot," he snapped, pointing at the other boy, "I would have met you sooner. If he hadn't meddled in business that's not even his,"  
"It's my business!" the boy spat.

"Shut up and _get lost_, how many times do I have to tell you!" Moran sneered, leaning down to make the other boy feel he was having to go to his eyelevel, like a Mum does to their disobedient child.

"I'm not going anywhere,"  
Morgan ignored him, "So, how long has it been Rei? I don't think you really appreciate how long it took me to find you. What I've had to do,"  
I wasn't surprised. It was the holidays at Morgan's school, didn't he always go to Connecticut with his Mum?

"Leave him along Morgan,"  
"Look, who the hell invited you into this conversation!"  
I watched the pair of them argue but couldn't hear anything. It sounded like a bird was trapped inside my ears, flapping desperately, until I realised it was my heartbeat.

"So Rei, are we going to meet up sometime? Have a talk. We can't really make a decent conversation in a bathroom now can we?"

I shook my head. Just like old times; I was doing everything Morgan said.

"Now, come and see us here tomorrow evening. We'll talk things through. Maybe I'll forgive you,"

"Great, can we go now?" my new friend said, glancing at the back door at the other end of the bathroom.  
"You can go whenever you want, shorty, I'm not interested!"

The boy turned and as he passed me, grabbed onto my wrist. I was yanked backwards and he dragged me towards the back door. He swung it open, threw me through, and I landed heavily on my butt on the other side.

"Who the hall _are_ you!" I yelled at him, as he barred the door. The evening air chilled me even more.

"Tyson. Tyson Granger. And you are so flipping _stupid_!"

------------------------------------------------------------------


	15. Chapter 15

AS: Ok, this chapter may be a little confusing when it comes to lay-out, time frames etc, but I hope it works. The stuff in bold type is the contents of the letters, the italics in these marks /are song lyrics, also.

This chapter doesn't really carry the story on much but fills it out a bit. A lot of character stuff in here! Next chapter will be the plot thickening!...well, not thickening, its already as fat a beach whale in my mind, but you know, itll quicken up again!

Enjoy!

* * *

"Tyson Granger. And you are so flipping _stupid_!"

Rei stared at the boy as he pressed his ear to the door.

"I don't think they'll chase after us," he said, turning back to Rei.

"How…how do you know Morgan?"  
Tyson sighed and looked to the floor, scuffing the toes of his red trainers against the cracked tarmac.

"Look…I'll walk home with you. Come on, I'm freezing,"  
Rei staggered to his feet and followed him as he set off, hands dug deep inside his pockets.

"Was it you that sent me that note?"

"The one telling you not to go to your lesson? Yeah. I knew Morgan would be waiting to jump you. And I was watching him for you when you blundered in!"  
Tyson's teeth chattered with the cold and he sucked in breath, pinning his arms closer to him.

"Why do you think I was acting like that back in there? I'm not that scary in real life you know,"

He gave Rei a grin, his teeth white in the darkness. Out of the red light of the club, Rei could see his eyes were a deep brown and he must have been about Max's age.

"Sorry about that. Being so pushy. I just didn't want you to stumble in on Morgan. Which you did,"  
"Is that why you called me stupid?"

Tyson rolled his eyes. The swish of the waves was all they could hear apart from their footsteps. They had left the clubs behind them and as Rei looked to his right, all he could see was the broody, inky expanse of water. It looked as cold as it probably was.

"You _were_ stupid! I mean, I know the last thing you want to do is meet Morgan, but then you go and walk into the biggest fighting club in town. Surely you knew Morgan was around. And I bet you know he fights. I thought you would put two and two together,"

Rei felt stupid enough as it was and hunched further into his jacket.  
"I was just interested,"  
"Well, now you know," Tyson said. He gave Rei a smile, "It's fine,"  
They carried on in silence for a few more minutes, then Tyson said, "That's how he's been getting down here, you know. With the fight clubs. Touring, all the way from Connecticut down to here,"  
"Connecticut? So he is supposed to be with his Mum on holiday,"  
"Yeah. I don't know how he got out, but he'll become a missing person if he's not careful,"

"He always was,"  
"Yeah. He didn't care about having to be dragged home by the police,"  
"Tyson…how do you know Morgan?"

"Nevermind," Tyson said, quickly, beginning to beam again, "It's nothing. Hey, you live on this street don't you?"  
Rei glanced up the road. The journey had gone way too fast. Rei still had questions. But Tyson was already moving off now, waving over his shoulder. He called, "Don't worry, we'll talk again later! Just don't do anything stupid!"  
Rei watched him disappear. He had a strong sense to follow him but decided against it. He'd had enough for one night.

* * *

Lee stared vacantly at the television. He had been sat like this for the past hour or so, and just didn't feel like moving. He was thinking.

"Lee, have you had anything to eat?"

"What?"  
"For dinner. Have you had anything to eat?"  
"No, I'm fine,"  
His Mum rolled her eyes and went back into the second lounge which she and her husband occupied the most. Lee hadn't even looked away from the TV, and the images began to blur into a pinkish blob. He squeezed the remote in his hand and gritted his teeth.

'Idiot,' he thought, throwing the remote onto the pillow next to him, 'I let him get away with so goddamn much! Idiot. I should have stopped him. It shouldn't have mattered about my….animosity towards Rei, I should have paid more attention to that weird Morgan guy. That guy is deranged. How does he charm people, sensible people like Rei, into doing things and being his friend? God, how can I say that, _I_ was convinced by him. I beat Rei up because Morgan told me Rei ordered him to knock me about. I'm an idiot,'

Lee stood up and shut the television off. A car dove past the house and flooded orange light into the dark living room and over his face. He turned quickly and left the living room, running up to his bedroom. Upstairs, he dug around the drawers of his desk. He yanked them opened them onto the rug one by one, going through their contents.

"Where are they?" he mumbled, throwing an old magazine into the bin. "Aha,"

In the bottom drawer, was sat a thick envelope, worn at the folds. It had cellotape bound heavily around it, keeping it closed. Lee grabbed a pair of scissors and began to cut the many layers of cellotape away. He shred and ripped and cut, hoping he wasn't damaging the contents. After finally ripping off the last few brittle layers, he emptied the contents on his bed.

There was about ten other envelopes inside, all decorated with stickers and drawings. He picked out the oldest, with his home address written out in a childish scribble. He opened it and stared at the stickers and pictures adoring the sides of the letter. Then Rei's scribbled handwriting:

**'Hello Lee! **

**What is it like in America? Is it odd? I think your really brave, I would be really scared! Have you started school yet? What is an American school like? Mum says it's not like it is in the village. What is it like then? **

**I really miss you. Mariah cried a lot when you left. She's going around sniffing and using Kevin as a comfort toy! He misses you too. So does Gary. Your our big brother and you've gone! Anyway, we hope you are OK, and we all want to know what America is like! Is it big? Mum says you get lots of television there! What is it like? I've got to go now, sorry. I have to go and help Kevin with his writing homework! And then we're going up to Cat Rock to play daredevils! I hope Kevin doesn't try to fly again. **

**Bye, bye Lee! **

**From Rei….and Kevin and Mariah and Gary!'**

**  
**Lee stared at the letter and then settled it gently down onto his bed. He picked up another, a newer one. The writing was more ordered and neat, and didn't need to add so many stamps as it didn't come from China.

He closed his eyes momentarily before opening it, as if bracing himself. Lee knew what it said, but it had been a while before he had read it.

The letter was on simple plain paper, with the message written in the middle:

**'Lee. **

**I know you may have heard this now, but Len died. I wanted you know it was from complications through food poisoning, nothing else. I didn't want you to hear something else at school. I don't know why I'm telling you, I know you won't reply. **

**Rei'**

He put his head in his hands and groaned, 'I'm such an asshole. What the hell is _wrong_ with me! I've got to be a better friend towards Rei,'

_/Is my imagination running away with me?_

_Or is this really happening to me?_

_Am I a prince in a far away land filled with fantasy?_

_Where is reality and what are the actions that will define who I am?_

_I am holding onto the visions that I've seen of what I could be,_

_It's what I should be._

_More than it seems these dreams inside,_

_Blur reality's line,_

_If I could believe the dreams aside,_

_I am capable more than it seems._

_Passing through darkness into my own world,_

_Will I be more than when I left,_

_Never letting go of those lessons I learned,_

_This will make a change,_

_A change within me._

_More than it seems these dreams inside,_

_Blur reality's line_

_If I could believe the dreams aside_

_I am capable more than it seems._

_This time I won't run away,_

_I found the strength to face life's long days._

_This time I won't run away,_

_More than it seems these dreams inside,_

_Blur reality's line,_

_If I could believe the dreams aside,_

_I am capable more than it seems._

_'Til there's nothing left of me,_

_Show me the way to these dreams/_

**

* * *

(same time frame, different place)**

Morgan was lying draped across his mattress, half asleep, drifting in and out of dreams. One of his friends snorted as they breathed in and coughed. He tossed, his duvet wrapping tighter around him.

**_Dream/Flashback_**

"Morgan! Morgan! Where are you!"  
A five year old Morgan poked his head around his wardrobe door. He grinned as his Mum entered his room, searching for him. He pulled the door shut and put his hands over his mouth to stop himself from giggling. His mother searched for a few more moments, and after checking under the wardrobe, she finally opened the doors.

"Boo!" Morgan cried, throwing his arms out. His Mum smiled distractedly and started smoothing the clothes out around him.

"Morgan you're going to crumple your shirts darling, come out,"

He crawled out around her as she continued to smooth out the crease and re-hang a few clothes. Morgan shoved his hands in his pockets and pouted, "You didn't jump,"

She wasn't listening.

_**End of Flashback**_

_**Start of Dream/Flashback **_

"Mum I'm going out,"  
The woman at the ironing board eyed him dubiously, "Where? And have I ironed that shirt for you?"  
"I don't know. I'm going out with my friends, now leave me alone!"  
"If you don't come back at an earthly hour this evening Morgan I swear I will-"  
"You will what! You can't do anything to me Mum!"  
"I'll get your Dad to sort you out!"  
"Oh yeah, and how is he going to do that! Is he going to forcibly ground me all the way from Prague!"  
"Shut up!"

The argument was escalating ridiculously fast, as their arguments had had a tendency to do over the past four years.  
"It's true! He's not a part of my life anymore Mum, and he shouldn't be a part of yours!"

The iron began to burn a hole through the cardigan she was ironing.  
"How can you say that! He's your father-"  
"I don't care anymore! I've given up caring! You may want to hang onto his memory Mum, but for me, it's too late! He's gone, and there's no point holding on to the memory of a guy I hardly knew anyway!"

"He's still your Dad!"  
"Shut up! Shut up! He's not my Dad! He's non of my business anymore! Stop bringing him up! If you love him so much, go over to Prague and fight his floozy girlfriend for him, but don't get me involved!"

Morgan excited the house, grabbing his phone from the hall table, and slammed the door shut so ferociously the glass shook in the door panels.

_**End Flashback**_

Morgan cracked open eye. He rolled onto his stomach and buried the side of his face into the pillow, staring across the large drafty warehouse floor. Was his Dad even in Prague anymore? He thumped his pillow angrily to try and fluff it up, wrapping it in his fists and shoved it against his rudimentary headboard with more energy than was truly needed to make a pillow more comfortable.

'Why am I thinking about where he is?' he thought bitterly, slamming his head down into the over-plumped pillow, 'Like the hell I care,'

He brought his finger up to his mouth and began to bite his nails.

_/Memories are just where you laid them_

_Drag the waters 'til the depths give up their dead,_

_What did you expect to find? _

_Was it something you left behind?_

_Don't you remember anything I said/_

* * *

AS: This chapter may be a bit confusing, sorry! But I like it. So, I've got a song for Lee, from the 'Music Inspired by The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe CD' by Kutless, called More than It seems. And I've got a verse form Haemorrhage (In my hands) by Fuel.

I like this chapter because it shows the two main…well, jerks (I know Lee is realising the error of his ways but go with me here people) of the story being human.

…..

Don't ask why I enjoy doing that and I insist on doing it just do!  
TTFN!


	16. Chapter 16 Dark Haired Boy

AS: Sorry for the long wait. I hope this chapter comes off OK. Thanks for my reviews too, by the way!

**This is dedicated to my Obsession Whores: Becky and Hannah, who I don't think read this but are still my obsession whores and helped me through this chapter. Beckyin maths and Hannah whilst watching Becky have a panic attack in textiles!**

Enjoy...

* * *

REI'S POV 

"Why do people do that?" Max cried, waving a hand at the screen. He was bouncing up and down on the sofa in agitation, "I mean, come on, you hear a bump in the night and you wander around in your bed clothes trying to _find_ it! How ridiculous can you be!...Oh and look, now she's been grabbed, well, that's a surprise. Why do they _do_ that!"  
Kai, from where he is sat on the armchair, looked amused, "It's a film, Max. Calm down,"  
Max grins, "Hehe. Sorry. They're still stupid,"  
He leans back in the sofa. Since this is the only raised voice I've heard in a while, I actually paid attention to what Max was saying, but for the rest of today I've been wandering around like a little ghost. Believe me, Max has told me often us. Kai even mentioned it once.  
"Are you tired or something Rei?" Max asked me as the dumb leading lady on the screen began to run through the house in her ridiculously short nightie screaming. Max's right, why _do_ they insist on walking into the evil thing's hands?  
"What? No, I'm fine,"  
"You're _really_ spaced out,"  
"Yeah, well…"  
I realised they were both waiting for me to come up with an excuse, "Nothing," I grumble, sinking lower in my place.  
"Ugh. Nasty monster," Max commented when the thing was finally brought into the light, "How did they get the pus to dribble like that when it moved?" pause, "Oh, you know what it looks like? That yoghurt we found in the back of the fridge Kai,"I was pretty gobsmacked by that. I could imagine Judy's fridge being just like my Mum's. I.e. impeccable.  
"A nasty yoghurt?"  
"Yeah! It was gross. We had to pick it up with a spatula,"  
There was another pause, in which the stupid lady was being mauled to death by the pus-ball.  
"Oh, that reminds me! My guitar teacher could really do with that guitar of yours Rei, if you're still selling it. He's teaching kids who don't have their own and he's been cut down to just two,"  
I blinked, "Max, how did that pus thing killing that woman make you think about guitars?"  
"I don't know. It just did. Probably cos the thing's head kinda look like the body of a guitar,"  
I stare at the screen, "Maybe,"  
"Anyway, is it still up for sale?"  
"Um…yeah. Sure,"  
"Cool. If you bring it to school tomorrow I'll pick it up at the end of the day and take it to my lesson,"  
"Sure,"

NORMAL POV

Rei rushed into his room at about seven o' clock. His Mum followed him, asking animatedly about his day, not seeming to notice her son's urgency.  
"Did you have a good time?"  
"Hm?"  
"Did you have a good time?"  
"Oh, yeah. Great,"  
"What did you do?"  
"Watch a few horror movies,"  
She shook her head and tutted with a smile, "I don't know _why_ you boys like those awful movies so much!"  
Rei eventually found what was looking forward to. He wrapped his fingers slowly around the cool neck part of his guitar case.  
"You alright honey?"  
"Yeah, I'm fine,"  
"Well, dinner will be ready in an hour,"  
"OK,"  
She left, shutting the door behind her. Rei pulled the guitar slowly from the depths of his cupboard. There was a bugle in it's bottom part, and when he zipped it open the box of photographs fell out. Rei gritted his teeth, snatched them up and slammed them into her desk drawer. The minute he had had dinner he was going to bury the box in the garden, he swore to himself. Just like he had done the last week or two. He slid his guitar from its' case and onto his lap.  
'OK,' he thought, slowly, 'I can do this. Just put it back in the case and put it by your school bag. All you have to do is take it into school tomorrow, give it to Max, then it's not your problem anymore. It's not yours. You're doing what you wanted to do a long time ago,'  
Rei groaned and delicately slid the guitar back in the case. Why did everything have to be so hard?  
'Why I can't I just, for once, grow a spine?' he put the guitar down next to his school bag, 'On second thoughts that would be a bad idea. Morgan would just break it into two,'  
After a while, the idea of Morgan breaking something got him into the train of thought that included Tyson. Who the hell was that kid? How did he know Morgan? Oh God he was sick of thinking about it.

After dinner, just like he promised himself he would, Rei went down to the bottom of the garden. He knelt on the cold earth and stared at it for a while. He clutched the garden trowel he had found in his left hand and dug it into the earth. But that was as far as he got. An hour later he was sat in his room staring out into the garden, burning holes into the bush he had hidden the photographs in with his intense stare.

* * *

Max's blonde head appeared around the doorframe. Kai looked up from his book.  
"Mars Bars or Milk Ways?"  
"Pardon?"  
"Do you want some Mars Bars or a Milky Ways?" Max waggled the phone he was holding in his hand, "Mum's ringing from the gas station and she's getting us something since we ran out of chocolate. So what do you want, some Mars Bars or some Milky Ways. It's all they've got left,"  
"Oh. Mars Bars,"  
"Ok,"  
Max put the phone back to his ear, "Mum, Kai wants Mars Bars…yeah, sure…"  
The sound of Max conversing moved off down the corridor and downstairs. Kai sat back in his chair, and slipped the newspaper article out from under his book that he had been reading earlier. It was the missing person's profile from earlier. There was something about the boy in the picture he was sure he recognised. He knew he hadn't seen the guy in the flesh, or he would have remembered him for sure. He closed his book and put his mind to finding out where he had seen this Morgan Demsey before. And eventually, it clicked.  
"Those photographs," he breathed. _Morgan_! _This_ Morgan guy, was the Morgan guy Rei had told him about! He couldn't believe what an idiot he had been! Why hadn't the name Morgan clicked in his head the second time he heard it! The missing boy was the boythat Rei knew. Kai shook his head. He'd told Max about the Morgan guy too. So how did _both_ of them miss the connection? Kicking himself inwardly, he left his room to find Max.  
"Max,"  
"Yup?"  
"The guy in the missing person's profile,"  
"Um…oh yeah. What about him?"  
"He's Morgan,"  
"Yeah, I know. It said his name,"  
"No, Max. It's _Morgan_. As in the Morgan I told you about. The one I told you not to talk about in front of Rei or get involved in unless he asked us to?"  
"Oh yeah! I remember,"  
"Rei said that Morgan's got his cousin. That he could be coming back to punish Rei. I told you not to get involved and I promised myself I wouldn't get involved too but maybe…_now_, we should,"  
Max blinked, "Did someone give you happy pills or something Kai, that's more than you've said in a week,"  
Kai ignored the comment and took in the face staring back at him from the newspaper clipping.  
"We shouldn't have ignored it," he said under his breath.  
"Yeah," Max mumbled, switching off the TV, "I mean. It's big. And we knew about it. I suppose we shouldn't have left Rei to hide from it on his own,"  
Kai shook his head. Why did he think it was better to let Rei heal on his own? It was obvious Morgan really was coming at Rei from all directions. How could Rei stand that on his own?  
"So what do we do? We know next to nothing about this guy. Apart from the fact he's missing. And he's after Rei,"  
Kai nodded. He put down the clipping. Max thought for a long moment before getting up and grabbing his jacket.  
"Max-"  
"Come on. We're going to see Rei,"  
"We can't,"  
"Why not? We'll leave a note for Mum, saying that we've gone to a friend's house. She won't mind. We've got a key to lock the door. Come on,"  
Kai, slightly baffled at Max's sudden clear way of thinking, followed Max out of the door.

* * *

"Hello?"  
"Um…hi. Can we talk to Rei, please?"  
"He's gone out. He said…," the woman at the door put her hand on her hip and surveyed the two boys stood huddled in the rain.  
"You two are Max and Kai, aren't you?"  
Max nodded mutely. She shook her head, "I don't believe this. Rei said he was going over to your house. Something about one of you not understanding a history paper that needed to be in for tomorrow. I…I don't believe him!"  
"What's going on?" a voice floated from behind the Rei's mother.  
"Shing, Rei's gone missing,"  
"What?"  
A face appeared around the doorway.  
"Do you boys want to come in, you're soaked through,"  
"No, we're good. Thank you," Max gabbled, turning to walk away, "Thanks anyway Mrs Kon!"  
"Where are you going!-"  
A few minutes down the road, Kai spoke up over the wind, "Max why did we just walk away from them?"  
"Well…well what use was it staying there? They obviously have no idea where Rei's gone. They'd probably blame us too," Max shrugged further into his jacket. He briefly noticed Kai wasn't wearing them, although he knew very well his brother seemed almost immune to temperature change.  
"We should try the park," Max thought out-loud.  
"Why would he go to the park?"  
"To think,"  
"In the rain?"  
Max sighed in frustration, "Then where did he go? Um…where would you go, Kai, if you'd just told Mum that you were staying at someone else's house, but weren't really?"  
Kai frowned, "I'm not telling you where _I_ go. But I think I know where Rei's gone,"  
"What, really? Where? Why can't you tell me where you go? Where do you go?"  
"Just follow me Max,"  
Max trotted along after Kai as he strode off, "It's not anywhere shady is it? I thought you said that you went to the park! Where do you really go Kai?"  
Kai ignored him. He continued to ignore him for the rest of the trip, even though Max's doubts were beginning to filter through, "Maybe I was a little adventurous suggesting this,"  
"Why?"  
"Kai; it's the docks. It's full of fighting clubs. And it smells like dead fish and other…stuff,"  
"The minute we find Rei we'll get out of here,"  
"Are you sure he'll be in one of these?"  
"Very sure,"

* * *

"Morgan,"  
Morgan turned his head to look over his shoulder. Some scrawny kid he vaguely remembered meeting last week was stood behind him, scratching his elbow.  
"What?"  
"You know that guy we had to look out for? He's just walked in. Right now,"  
Morgan turned fully. He raised his eyebrows. "Oh, really?" he laughed, "I can't believe he's back for more. After last time. Well, lets go and say hello then. Where is he?"  
"By the bar. Looking pretty depressed if you ask me,"  
"I didn't ask you, but thank you," Morgan replied smoothly, brushing past him.  
Leaving the younger boy behind, Morgan moved through the crowd towards the bar. The young men gave little respect to the teenager in their midst and ignored him. So it was helpful that Morgan's piercing glare was a good crowd-parter. After a few seconds searching, Morgan found who he wanted. He moved slowly up behind them. The fight at the ring was beginning to reach it's pique. The crowd roared as a beefy man with an overhanging brow slammed a poor young guy down onto the floor. Morgan took his chance and moved forward, sliding his hand around his target's mouth and pulling him backwards off the stool. He used his elbows to pin the boy's arms to his sides.  
Peters was waiting by the door, grinning like the maniac Morgan appreciated him being. You couldn't have entirely sane runaways on your side or they'd get ethical. Morgan didn't exactly like ethics. It's not like anyone actually paid attention to them. He threw the boy in his arms to the floor.  
"Morgan, I-"  
"Shut up," Morgan said, primly. He knelt down to his level, "Believe me, you don't have to say a thing,"

* * *

Kai watched Max talk to the barman from his post at the door. He didn't particularly like being here, just like Max. It was too crowded and noisy for his taste. Full of egotistic megalomaniacs. Kai thought briefly that if he hadn't been adopted by the Tate's he could have easily gone down this road.  
"Kai!" Max tripped up in front of him, hair in his eyes. He swiped it away hurriedly, "The barman said he saw some kid in here soaked through. Said he couldn't get a look at his face because it was too dark where he was sitting. But…I mean, that could be him, right. I can imagine Rei walking through torrential rain when he's depressed,"  
"I don't know. Where did he go?"  
"Barman said he just suddenly disappeared. Did you ask anyone about Morgan?"  
"I heard someone talking about him. He said he was in the back,"  
"You think we should…go and see him?"  
"Go and _see_ him? And do what?"  
"I don't know. Tell him to leave Rei alone,"  
"I doubt that'll work, Max,"  
Max sighed, "Well. If Rei's not here, we're going to have to go. And wait until morning,"  
"OK," Kai resented. Together they shunned their way through the crowd. As they passed the bar again, their senses were flooded with an overpowering smell of cigarette smoke and dry laughter, "Ha-ha, he's going to screw him up good. Can't wait to see it,"  
Kai paused, watching the pair out of the corner of his eye. He was aware Max had stopped and was watching him carefully, trying to figure out what he was doing.  
"Where's he doing it?"  
"Out in the back. No-one's going to hear someone making a noise back there. You know he's been chasing that guy for, like, months," the first drawled. He was probably about twenty one, with an overhanging brow and broad shoulders, his thick fingers making his cigarette look like a twig in comparison. A bruise cast a shadow over his right eye. Kai mused that he could have easily been a regular fighter here.  
"That kid's a complete psycho. He's, what, fifteen? Sixteen?"  
"Like you can talk Mitch. You were knifing people when you were thirteen!" the second laughed. The other shrugged and sniffed heavily, stubbing his cigarette out.  
"Whatever man, I was never that crazy,"  
A horrible sense of nausea and adrenaline gripped Kai's stomach.

* * *

"There's nothing to be said. I believe you've said everything to me in the past,"  
One of the handful of Morgan's friends surrounding them grabbed his shoulders and lifted him to his feet, pinning a hand over his mouth. Wide eyes stared out over the top of the beefy hand, the only sound the muted, thrumming beats from the bar and the harsh panting.  
"You've caused me enough trouble, you know. And I don't like having my time wasted," he came very close and grabbed a fistful of dark hair, "You always called me a complete psycho, didn't you? Behind my back. Even to my face. A _lot_ after you left. I also don't like being called names,"  
He lunged his hand forward, the sharp blade concealed in his palm driving home. Morgan smiled an eerie, small smile. He slid the blade out and watched the eyes narrow in pain. Peters flung the half-limp body onto the concrete. Morgan stood back to watch, his smile wide and gleeful.  
"Oh shit,"  
Morgan frowned and turned to look over his shoulder, "Who the hell let them in?"  
Max swallowed heavily, staring at the blood. He'd gone very pale.  
Morgan scoffed, "Great security guys," he muttered, shouldering past Peters, brandishing the knife again.

* * *

A:S: if you're gonna shoot me don't shoot to kill, cos the next chapter is gonna come up soon! 


End file.
